AT NIGHT I POP 50 MG OF ZOLOFT— SMOKE A JOINT—AND COUNT THE STRANGERS IN MY DREAMS
M. Bennett
—i fall asleep as always—
chapped lips leaving a hazy taste on my tongue—
another taste from some discount
lemon glaze chicken tossed in my cart
after another sweaty shift stocking shelves—
arms pulled tight between my chest and my mattress—
i shadow the world and sleep—
or post masturbation
and post-post-masturbation tears
i tuck my body into itself
and wet my pillow
until too tired to keep eyes pried open i sleep—
and sometimes you are there
and sometimes you are there
and sometimes you
and you
and you
are there with hundreds of others i don’t know—
so i throw myself into a lake—
and i lock myself in a burning post office—
and i look over my shoulder at some cackling you—
and i don’t wake up—
and i know i’m not waking up—
and i know i can’t get away—
and i know this is not the right you—
so i get in some elevator—
press myself into the stainless wall—
first i press here—
then i press here—
the
buttons
all
light
the
same—
and i end up back in the water—
i look for some friendly you—
but that’s a different kind of dream—
where you
and you
and i
strip naked
and wade calf-deep in the mucked up pond back home—
but this you wants me
purple and unbreathing—
so i take the elevator
and take the elevator
and run the stairs
and crash dad’s car
and hail a cab
and take the fucking elevator
and always end up in the water—
and i look for a steady you in the bathroom
behind a steamed-up shower door—
and i look for a simple you
on the floral couch next to the other yous—
and i pretend that i am a you in my own dream— i don’t like this steering—
and none of these pieces stain-glass together enough
for the light to filter in—
i wake up in the dark—
no yous—
barely a me—
i wake up but still asleep—
go to the kitchen for a drink
m bennett is a poet living in Tucson, AZ. Originally from a village in Ohio called Jewett, they explore their rural background, mental illness, inherited traumas, & sexuality in their writing. The recieved an MFA in Creative Writing from The University of Alabama, & their work has appeared in GASHER, Brainchild, & a few others. They miss cows daily, love vintage costume earrings, attempt to bake pies, & spend their free time painting eyes in many forms. They desperately hope that the ghost of their great-gramma Bea will appear to them outside of a dream, but they are still waiting.
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