—SIT AND LISTEN, SIT AND LISTEN

 Precocious

You’re a quick study,

which is necessary for survival,

but one day you learn

there are no real nightmares,

just the things that never end,

bindings on your ankles,

tossed over,

no need for a shipwreck or sinking

when it’s you

dropping below the surface,

air bubbles crawling

across your face

like see-through spiders

frightened for themselves,

boulders belching up murk,

seaweed hair waving Hello,

waving Goodbye,

while the white bones

of some fish float by

like a broken alphabet

spelling out the question

What took you so long?