i am the glassy sheet of ice

that folds in upon itself suddenly with the slightest touch

and the leaf that was shed in autumn

to be uncovered, a skeleton

all dry veins and paper thin

in spring.

i wake up sometimes in the middle of the night

and your name is

crawling up my throat

i swallow it like a pill

without water

and i can still taste it

in the back of my mouth.