you were once you

is what I told you
to dry our pillows
once in February

because the moisture that once made our eyes heavy, now saturated the cloth womb
responsible for our momentary reprieve
because unmoving quilts were favorable to the cold investing our bedroom

because you needed it
even though it wasn’t much
a collapsed vein
to a neglected limb

because the deviation had become too great
because the bones still stood
where they once did
left without opportunity for abandonment

even though everything else had quit

we no longer laughed at the blood flowing from your fingertips
even though it didn’t flow much anymore anyway

imagination always evolves to obligation
love always evolves to complacency

some mornings you seemed like you
but the eerie facade
became apparent
as the sand fell from our eyes

and all we wanted was the stagnation we sought to avoid

And we both would look at the ceiling
Wondering when the cold would stop
Being so cold

**Owner receives hand painted 18” 24” acrylic extension of this piece**