We search around for words
For being
As if we find a name
We will be
Time was when a new name brought excitement
We tried on letters for size
Dollies dressing up
Shoes of paper
Shawls of dirt
We stepped gingerly out there
Out there
Has rubbed away our shoes
Left us cold
Unamused
Any name seems tired
Rotting and sharp
Like sulphur
Itching up our nose
wake up wake up
Shake the leaves off your shoulder and choose
The radio scratches fifteen minutes
I can’t move to stop it
We pick leaves from the bin
Like pick and mix
Grind them up in our teeth
She is better at chewing
Sometimes she shares
A little glob of paste spat in my hands
I should be disgusted
But I am not
We share this
When there is nothing else left to find
No letters
No names
I look into her milky face and think I cannot lose you
But we know that this is fragile
Not quite sincere
That we will spit each other out
When the time comes
And the time always does come
My hand moves
Mutes the radio
wake up wake up
Shake the leaves off your shoulder and choose.
