Sleep

We sit on the floor and play with the letters
Too tired to move
We wait
We have forgotten what for
There has always been powder days
All we want is sleep
Time moves forward
We hold hands
Brace for the inevitable
The seconds seem relentless
We count our way down the stairs
Step a toe outside
It makes us shake
Are we even real
His voice is always in my head
I don't want it to go
And so I have Alice and you.

Shells

We pick up shells from the seashore
Salt on our lips
Hungry for the cool lemonade
It waits in the bag we carefully prepared
We take our shoes and socks off
Dabble our toes in the cool salty water
The horizon is clear
For one fleeting moment all is well
When the sky becomes heavy we trudge back in the sand
It sticks to our feet
You light a cigarette
I delve into the bag
Drink small sips of lemonade
Try not to think of the scratching sand
My head whirls unused to being outside the confines of home
Home
That's what I will call it
I slip the shells into my pocket
I will remember this day
The highs and lows
The ebb and flow of the tide
Most importantly I will remember you.

Lake

We dream under apricot skies
Always running
Shoulders stuck
The weight of stones sit gently in my pocket
Everything is spinning
An archaic dance
A picture and a gift
We wrap ourselves up in the quilt
Heart racing
The stair case defeats us
Dream tip time travel
Banging heads on the bathroom floor
I have lost sight of the signs
She takes my hand
All this will pass
A lake pours through the windows
It would be unkind to disappear
I remember the horses
Hay on noses
Pine needles under foot
We sense each others pain.

Talk

It's really quite funny she giggles
How you keep searching for the thing you can never have
But I have to try
Not having cans is a nightmare
My body twitches and the stairs move like jello
We have to hold the railings to get out the door
No wonder we never leave this place
Sleep comes
We wake ourselves up talking
I talk more in my sleep than when I'm awake
It feels safer that way
But the words make no sense
She wipes the hair from her face
Washes her sticky fingers
I open the windows wide
We like the breeze
It's really quite funny she giggles.

Wilderness

We roam the streets looking for answers 

The strange rattle of empty cans interferes with our soul

Nothing measures up to the high we once had

All around us is the silent roar

We cup our ear to the bed

Try not to sink

Always waiting

Tomorrow never enough

It all seems so unfair she moans

It is hot 

The pillow is static

Feint marks of blood on the sheets

A wilderness we cannot tame

We wish a thousand dreams

Totter on the stairs

Nothing measures up to the high we once had.

Calligraphy

We drink the cup
A strange kind of calligraphy
We are bound by a name
Strapped down and crying
We tap our head
The space between thought and doing is too great to bear
The cracks are red
Dark and tinged
We lie back in the red bed
The cans rattle around us
We drink the cup
A strange kind of calligraphy.

Shake

Our hands shake blue
We are waiting for the cans
Hair pulled back
Thick cotton on our back
Sweat trickling
Head racing
We don't know what to do
All is quiet
And yet our brain rages
We are trapped in this cycle with no way out
We listen to the voices
They are loud now
Ice does not extinguish the flames of their being
Our hands shake blue
We are waiting for the cans.

Whispher

Alice dusts the smoke off her shoes
We are tripping the light fantastic
A simple climb up
Knots on edge
Sea spray
A narrow path we walk
Hold on tight she whispers
The gravel crunches
He holds the telephone up into the night
Is this what you hear
So many voices
All a pattern and a verse
We walk along the edge
Follow the patterns
Whisper a tune
Alice dusts the smoke off her shoes
We are tripping the light fantastic.

Wounds

Alice dusts the smoke off her shoes
We are in the cement bunker
We wash our wounds as the clock turns
All we can think about is the cans
The air is turbulent
We take stock in the cabinet
The smell of the day overwhelms us
We are no longer young
We search for the city
All we have is dreams
Wash down the powder
Lie in the bed
The mess is too much to bear
Alice dusts the smoke off her shoes
We are in the cement bunker.

Liberty

Alice shakes the dust off her boots
We are free
The gnats fly and soar
We buzz them with our words
Words are powerful she giggles
We eat dinner on the floor
It is safer that way
The birds fly and soar
We think we remember his name but we have forgotten
Liberty trails at our feet
The cans make it better
For a short while
Alice shakes the dust off her boots
We are free.