AMNESIA-DREAM, AGE FIVE

05/02/09


The Rooms go back and back and back,
Beneath “Employees Only” signs,
And velvet ropes to file by year
These rings of junk your Mom threw out.

The Rooms go back and back and back,
Through hearthside doors you thought too small,
Then turned your head straight up and climbed
The cleats that spiral down the mind.

The rooms go back and back and back,
Through Dutch doors hung half-in, half-out,
Progressing down, through spiral rungs,
and bitter air as thick as dust.

The Rooms go back and back and back,
While parlor Steinways still mis-tuned
Gronk out the chords we can’t recall,
The songs we lose more of each year.

The rooms go back and back and back,
Through everything you ever owned
And lost: Just shuffled On, and Down,
Retired, between the worlds, this hall—

The Rooms go back and back and back.