Long Drawn

Staying up
and avoiding food like words
mornings sting
but the days--they burn
Wisp, on the wind
of your voice ringing clear--
a deep, reverberating gong
The vibration is keeping me here.

Sighs
follow me like lost dogs
How do they know who not to fear?
Content, neither extended nor drawn,
just macaroni and cheese
the kind with the packet of sauce
you cut open and flex while you squeeze

Waiting
stretches out time--pulls
at his shirt and wraps around
his ankles, begging slow
departure from the safety--
some adventures take time, there's
prices, always, to be free