A CLEANER YEAR

alone when the booms went off,

I didn’t know the time,

didn’t know the year,

couldn’t tell if I was asleep or awake,

better or worse, and I didn’t care.

(dust leftover from the habits of dead people.)

(the stray hairs of animals who kept every secret they were told.)

(people I’ve asked to leave.) (people who’ve just left.)

(an orchid the healthiest plant in the house.)

I don’t ask about the odds.

I can’t stop asking for perfection.

don’t laugh.

not even my nightmares scare me anymore.