Playing Dead

I want him to be quiet.
I want him happy and nearby,
lying down, facing me.

I want us to breathe softly,
to slip into unconsciousness
slowly, simultaneously

in broad day light.
This happens rarely,
but it has happened.

He calls it ‘playing dead’.

On Haunting

Meaning haunts words
as the future
haunts the present.

Analogies are useful
for scaring spirits off.

*

The young laugh wildly
at the mention
of the previous.

*

When I think you’re on the couch
and I hear you in the kitchen,

I’m alarmed
by your presence
and your absence
at once.

Image © Mohammad O Siddiqui