What if I want to go devil instead? Bow
down to the madness that makes me.
—Ada Limón, “Late Summer After a Panic Attack”
Please pretend you are listening.
What takes precedent in constant states of emergency?
This is a trick question.
The emergency is a distraction, a talking point.
A lullaby. The meter of any poem is its rhythm.
This commitment to repetition removes doubt.
Our cathedrals were built on these antinomies.
Their ancient meridians now too faint to be understood
as well-worn adaptive signals. You reference memory
to form approximate futures: a slip of breath dislocating.
Cache Culture 