So pumps the crimson, so it curdles the sleep in us all
The vacuum of souls so like their universe
One note, one verse
Ad infinitum sung, no … hummed
Until the eyes darken and the skin loosens and the
Teeth yellow and drop from the gums
Blood thickens with Weary, with boredom of Springs and Fall
Every word the same, every face known,
Every day a rhyme
Ether to amber to stone
Fruit cake and peppermints
Candlelit stockings the children
Swat at
Christmas syllables, sentiment
Sung until the liquor melts
Candy canes and magenta leaves
And the sleep
And tinsel trees