say it was the red of ponderosas lit
                         shimmering as negligees

say the sun kept tabs on your act

say it was years of you not picking
up your shit    needles   brush      chips

  say a line was crossed

say it was the heat
                like another animal’s skin

say the wind threw itself at your neck
of the woods               & i followed

say the constellation of embers
burning holes                    in the mesh
of your screen door

  say you should have prayed for rain

say it was my turn to screw up
tokens of memories
                        made near & without me

say i bounced back buttercups
              but you didn’t notice

say you who drove me up the walls
the vents   the beams    the plinths
        the sashes    the bed slats
            the skin

you & your certainty that men aren’t made
to be restrained

  say i had to show you control

say the ecstasy of leaping
between crowns

                            one more one more one more