you give me refuge from everything real, wrap
me in cool water, bright thoughts of tomorrow.
demons howl outside my door, vampires hide in
my shadow, persistent salesmen rap loudly
at my window–my life tries to get back in.
you make the dead buildings and dusty smog and
bloody road kill disappear, fade to creeping
ivy and tall, fork-toed waterbirds, present
me with talismans dedicated to some
silent, strong god, one that never interrupts
