sitting at a
red light
the music up
too loud
the city outside
sweltering
and moving
in slow drip
a dove flies
towards me
the wind blowing
against it
seeming to move
twice the speed
for half of
the distance

i couldn’t
quite figure out
if the glitches
in the simulation
were growing
worse by the day
or if my
perceptions of
the inconsistencies
were growing
slightly sharper

the bird flaps
its wings with
an instinctual fury
going nowhere
at double time
and i am singing
girl take it easy
as if everything
isn’t random noise
just variables we
assign a value to
trying desperately
to find meaning in
chasing the high
of a hamster in
a plastic ball

all i can think
is i am so
thoroughly
mentally drained
sleepwalking my way
through existential
terrors wearing
designer blinders
roasting marshmallows
on the flaming
corpse of wonder
skipping stones
across the placid
surface of dream
riding the nightmares
as they ripple
eagerly counting
falling stars with
the burning hope
one day it will all

stop

hang suspended
like a dove
caught in a headwind
to dissolve
specks of sand
stinging the dead
eyes of divine
misfortune as heard
in the conch shells
that have forgotten
the sound of the sea