I give my life to strangers
And I keep it from the ones I love.
Aging
Feed the desire, just to starve the will.
Stoic tolerance of a second-rate reality
Can you see me?
Let's all be Rembrandts on an LED screen
Staging a kiss,
Fluid gender dismissed.
The diluted glow of twilight
Paralyzing pain in being with family.
In the dark, you're not anywhere you can hide and hide.
As real as tall candles you light when you're afraid
Enthralling cruelty society throws at you,
Like a carnival squirt gun, just as cold and embarrassing.
You retreat from the light,
Can you hear me?
Take up space.