Abjuration of the Realm

Cutting onions for him at the kitchen counter yes,

I’m listening. Nobody

knows the words to the song, but I know.

I’ve heard it through the walls of his study.



The hours without him are

as pointless as an actual star. In the halls

at work I keep my head down.

I don’t want to be seen when it’s not him looking.



My love leaks out the sides of him. I sweep

it up and use it for stock.

If he ever leaves me I’ll cut down the walls.

When I drive him to work he doesn’t say a word.



He wakes up early to watch me sleep.

When he watches me sleep, my desires

come apart like a trick bicycle. He kisses

my eyelids and unplugs my alarm clock.



I wake up pregnant and starving for lettuce,

my hair as long as a Metro car.

If he ever leaves me I’ll cut down the town.

The sound of his voice is the song’s only word.



He doesn’t say a word as he eats my cooking.

I know he knows the future but he won’t let it show.

When I look at him my eyes are bonfires.

The neighbor’s lettuce is delicious.