I used to be a poet | but now I am an observer

Merely a low tide, guided by the moon
A syncopated melody, a surprise
an interlude | an intro | an outro

If I stood on Pluto / would I cease to exist? A former shell of a planet that’s never made a full orbit — I look for inspiration in this house of dead.

If I walked through a portal of time / would I break into fragments? I close my eyes and wonder if the circle of life only happens on worlds with an ecosystem.

I land on all four paws like a kitty. I burn my skin on the asphalt.

Is this alchemy?

Poured water at my feet and a pinch of charcoal on my forehead, bread in my palms, and grains of sand stuck to my knees.

*

a.m. coffee

grind the beans in your head
& smell the aroma of morning

the best caffeine /  is an internal mission
intention / is the best antidepressant
laughter, / the best core exercise
anxiety about the day, / the best laxative
your phone’s alarm / is your puppeteer
& the notification of your account balance / is its master

but,

none of this is valid
if you can’t get out of bed

**

Read two previous poems by Jason Masino