How do you measure
The depth,
The
Sincerity
Of
A smile

And how do you know
What
It
Means

He rubbed the lamp
Green smoke
Poured
Out
And he coughed
And rubbed
His eyes
And when he opened them
Again
He was greeted by
"Your wish is my command,"
And he saw a boy
Barely 10
Looking expectantly
Waiting
"Well?"
And the man thought
He thought
He remembered
What he lost
His home
His job
An arm
In the war
His little boy

Then he realized what he could do
Ending hunger
World peace
Give
Everyone
A reason
To stay

He looked back
At the genie

But he didn't
Say anything
And walked away

The genie followed

And the man kept walking
And the boy kept following
And then, without a word
Spoken
The man's wish was granted
Without wishing
He wasn't alone

And maybe someday, he'll use that wish, help them all, but
Not
Yet

A city of the dead in the middle of the living
Reality existing just outside a vision

If you could build
A tower
That spiraled
Up
So
High
That it literally
Broke through
The sky
You would, so you could
Put her in the stars

It's only when
You almost set your house
On fire
But put out the flames
Before they get too
Big
That you realize
"****, I shouldn't have left those paper towels so close to the stove".

The repairman
Sat at the bar
Broken
Great,
now there were
two things
he couldn't fix
She was gone
His heart went with her
And only a drunken shell
Remained
His dad always told him
"If something's broke, fix it"
And his dad gave him
His first set of tools
And they built
A rocking chair together
And even though
His dad was gone
He still had
Them
And his dad's last words
To him
Were "I love you"
But she always said
"You don't love me"
And she gave him
His first child
And they built
a family together
But she was gone
And he didnt
Still have
them
And her last words
To him
Were"I don't love you"

He left the bar
drunk
And started
For home
And as he walked
He saw families
And couples
But it was
always
her
Her with another
And he hated them

No
He hated himself

He was walking
Near a bridge
A good ways
Above the water
Rocks beneath

He stopped
He was on
The edge
Of the bridge
But it wasn't
a bridge
It was a pit
And he was at
The precipice

He jumped

And the only one
Who went to his funeral
Was his corpse

A man
Alone
Only comfort in sleep
Because only in sleep
Do the others come back
He dreams their lives
Their loves
Their pain
Their loss
But they aren't real
Only he is
What happens to them when he wakes up?