I shut my eyes

And when I opened my eyes another nightmare was beginning

And this nightmare was wearing a dazzling white suit

He was pretending that he cared about me but he didn’t

All he wanted to do was take from me

And let myself blow and bend like a tree in the wind

What did I tell you he said

Look away from the golden sunsets

Look away from the drying rivers

The choking summer sun

What do you mean, no

I can’t dance to this music

I just want to have another drink

OK man, just do it

I said, OK man, just do it

When I opened my eyes

I was thrown through the french doors

And into the garden

Choking on the smoke

But it still didn’t get me high

Lights and voices spilled from the remains of the bathroom window

But a few yards beyond the rubble

Night drew up its barricades and sealed them off

The barely glow of the stars

The trees and flowers stewing in their burnt odors

And there was no moon

Hey man, pull out your white handkerchief

And spread it over the darkness like ink

Spread the pale cloth over the darkness like ink

He gave me the goggles to watch and I put them on

To stare at the facade and almost think that the unripe pears could be lumber with which to rebuild

Take the smoldering wilderness and try to domesticate that with rocket ships

Or bury the consciousness in the darkness like ink

But the emptiness became an advertisement

And the drone operators came and uncovered me

Their gaze piercing through the veil of the white cabinets and the pink wallpaper

So I crawled into bed and pulled the sheets over my head

But even that didn’t shut out the light