Sinister Left Hand
Dedicated to Jeff Campbell

I give in
Outside the city
Where the fire doesn't light the sky
But becomes part of it
I keep my lips in my pocket
To hide my dreadful rainbow expressions
And conceal a smile
That comes with the crooked motives
There are needle marks on my arms
And I once showed them to her
Before I walked out
Into the force 8 storm
I end up on my face
On the ground
In a park
Where people think I'm having seizures
But I am merely crawling
To look at the sky from ground level
As though this will release something unknown before
The view doesn't change much
And I realize the stars stay in the same place
Moving only over time
Just as we move over distance
And my longing can grow
Like a sick bird
Confined to the ground
With the knowledge
That some birds just aren't made to fly