i prefer
to fingerpaint
in pain
because agony
is to be commiserated
whereas happiness
is enviable at best

somedays this
bipolar panoramic
plays out in
stunning contrast
to a fool himself
as the sun sets over
contented sighs

clutching joy
while fragmenting
is a spectacle unto
its own weird wonder
the chemicals sing
so much softer in
her registry

her soaked surrender
beckons my fevered tongue
into an agony only
poets and dreamers
can hope to understand
keeping a fine tip
on the dagger with
which i carve forever
into the stained cheeks
of beauty’s farewell