Less remarked on is the mask-laden buffet.
—John Ashbery
wake up. first
off, is it morning?
it’s morning, he
thinks. is it?
check map hue.
checking color
of map to see
where it is
darker, to see
where it is less
dark, ah, it is
exactly the
same. how
could that be?
look again.
take a nap.
dream a little.
did we dream?
who’s in?
who’s out?
take another
nap. awaken.
lie there for
a bit, trying
to imagine
the weather
on the other
side of the
wall. this
wall? yeah.
impossible.
to guess,
i mean.
check
smoke.
check.
check
smoke.
weather?
check.
where are
the fires
today?
not here.
here it’s
just smoke.
and heat.
and smoke
and heat.
smoke heat.
lie prone
for a
little
while longer.
