--EVERYONE THAT GREETED ME WAS MOVING SLOW AND DRINKING FAST.  I WAS LOST INSIDE A PAINTING ON THE WALL.

 

A Necessary Thing

 

Remember that time you thought you might actually be a vampire, a werewolf, a normal person

Remember that time you met your first monster face-to-face and it looked very familiar
Remember that first time you heard them, and then all the times after that, how it never got better
Remember that time you saw the window explode, the stubby end of an arrow stuck in a sprocket of glass like symbolism
Remember that time you swore you’d never drink coffee or beer, never take drugs
Remember that time you told God to Fuck off and weren’t scared in the least
Remember that time you said God if you’re real please don’t let me die
(Why’d you do that if you’d already told Him to Fuck off)
Remember that time you fell asleep on a makeshift raft and almost flipped over the falls
Remember that time you cleaned every surface because your parents were screaming and it seemed like a necessary thing to do, something that might help repair them
Remember that other time when your mother led the herd of you through a night of sleet and snow saying about your father We’re out of here I hate that sonofabitch
Remember that time you were nine, when everything became real and true, and you walked bare-chested in the rain trying to be brave because you were anything but
Remember that time you had nothing to say so you made shit up just to be able to have a conversation with the woman who was your mother, who made you, who made dinner and sometimes breakfast, who wasn’t a very good mother at all, sorry to say
Remember that time you were a Peeping Tom and got an eye full
Remember that time you got an eye full when you were actually looking the other way
Remember that time a pheasant flew into the picture window and you ate it for dinner
Remember that time the police came and you were happy to see them, said Stay a while Let me show you around
Remember that time you thought dreams could be had and you pasted posters on the walls when you ran for President at age nine
Remember that time at age nine
Remember that time at age nine
Remember that time at age
Remember that time later when you saw the first crease of skin and mortality introduced itself, offering a shifty grin, like it knew so many scary things about you
Remember that time when you confused birth control with Aspirin, thought they were taken arbitrarily, realizing the girl was just a girl looking for a lay, not a soulmate, and it broke off a piece of you
Remember that time a friend grabbed your shirt collar and yanked you backwards so that city bus didn’t flatten you
Remember that time
Remember that time
There are so many times to remember let’s just jump ahead shall we
Remember that time you were a very bad dog owner
Remember that time you were a very bad person
Remember that time you (actually) said I love this company the way a man loves a woman
Remember that time you emailed at 3:11 am and got one back saying you were more or less stupid
Remember that time when you said sleep is overrated
That time I wished I’d had more kids
That I’ve had a good life
That I could die tomorrow and it would be okay
Do you remember any of that stuff
Maybe you should revisit it
It’s not too late
The sun’s coming up tomorrow
Just look out the window
And see if it hasn’t already bloomed
Staring back at you for an honest answer