p l ay i n g be t w ee n w o r l d s by B E E L B a beeswax candle balancing on the lip of empty champagne. four green tongues of flame licking the underside of a log swollen with heat. sun-bitten skin slick with oil. a red-orange winged body stalking the side of the road. failed attempts to notice. unlit lamps in the eyes of a deer parallel a different road. these bodies asking questions i cannot hear or understand. superior’s chill swallowing my extremities is what i’ll remember. forget the black tourmaline ash. the brakes struggling downhill. the door falling closed. not sand but steady rock beneath my cold feet, superior tonguing my frozen toes. the heft of my body threatening to fall out of fear. contributing to the erosion. thieving rocks as substitute for memories. no shells to be found but a detached crab leg far from home. three months til change, a wish for return crackling across a phone line. forced curls as the braid unravels. a desperation i could have left while submerged in water. but then the water would be permeated by my tangled emotions. bright skies and uncertain rain since waking. red sand scarred my hands. an arcing boat scarred the surface of superior. i asked a stranger to believe me and he did. i held grace in both hands, dripping. i let the end approach me before i was ready. the days slipped away in sweating bottles of dwindling drink. 29
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