a poem by Lindsey Rankin

Stealing me back from you

an indeterminate crime
hides behind red eyes
stealing my own time
shortchanging myself
for scraps of fat
and stale crumbs
a slave in the field
stolen clock ticks
from the depths
of ironed pockets
can of spray starch
visine and a smile
hide the truth
from hidden camera
in black dome on

high

bloodshot eyes
a smile and a lie
sleepwalking stiffly
in starched slacks
a cup of coffee
a daytime delusion
a somnambulant dream

© Lindsey Rankin