I play with your neck and pluck
your strings and make the room
dance and act fools in love and
when the noise dies I need pills
and ***** to come back to Earth.
My fingers dance in my dreams.

Every living thing in this life
is harboring its ending. We
humans think it's just us.
Maybe every being knows
we are doomed. We pray
hope wish but know we die.
Turtles cross roads know risk.
Bugs fly fearless near light
know a magazine can ****.
We will never have been.

I was always second string.
Red shirt dummy for practice
in summers of Spartans glory.
Bacevich was a legend coach.
I shone one hot August day
hungover and craving nicotine.
**** these poseurs of fame.
We scrimmaged and played
our usual parts, but I was angry.
I stopped the blockers like stone
and tore the runners down.
Over and over I was a Hero
for an afternoon. The Coach said
I'd be a Gridiron Legend.
Just for one day.

I have nothing to promise.
You want a piece of my heart.
It isn't for sale or even mine.
It owns me. I do as I'm told.
I bleed when it says. I love
when it says. I die when it says.

I've nothing left to offer
    and nothing left to keep.
    I smoked our treasures in
    a crack pipe made of glass.
    I'll never leave you poor
    offering yourself as *****.
    I absolutely love you and
    if our love stays the course
    we'll find our way in rehab
    and absolutely not divorce.

They shoot me full of poisons
   and charge me a fortune for it.
   They steal my hair and strength
   and leave my skeleton to explain
   to friends and family about nausea
   and don't touch me or you'll burn.
   I can't **** my wife. I'm toxic.
   Love is watching someone die.

Left behind with stuff we didn't need.
We found you as a puppy and kept you
safe and loved you 'til we had to scram
and left the stuff we didn't need.
Forgive us our sins. I ache for you.
The day will come I'm left behind.