About You

I see you standing, 
Unable to make your next move.
There’s poison in the water,
Animal spirits in the night, 
Screens on our phones,
Voices in your head.

I see they stop you
From eating, from sleeping, 
From filling your lungs with air. 
I tell you they’re not real
And you turn me away,
Push the medicines away, 
Until I am the monster
Who feeds them back into you. 
The pills make you tremble
Though every dancing, laughing muscle of yours
Has already atrophied. 

You once combed my hair,
Under the yellow, lavender, peach, blue, green, and red walls
You picked for our home.

Today I brush yours,
Your eyes close in a moment of peace
And I catch a glimpse of you.