#NaPoWriMo 2021 Day 6 : “Fume”

Posted byJennifer PatinoPosted inpoetryTags:, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,




Fume

I am underwater. Eucalyptus steam
fever dream. Catfish bounce
on cotton clouds & my chest
is a nest for water babes &
a place for pollens to rest.
Rose cheeked nurses nod.
I am approved.
I am checked in.
Nasal soothe.

They say the air on this planet
is too much for me. I see how long
I can hold my breath for. Intubation.
Inhalation. This is a nightmare
nurturing my paranoia.
My throat has been filled
with soil. Ideas sprout up
to be crushed. Staticky hair
is brushed
in synchronistic waves.
Somewhere else,
a rescue is delayed.

I am veiled. I have prevailed,
but I’ll never be the same.
I am renamed. Emerged.
I stare at my lump
of old flesh clogging
the shower drain. A song
with French lyrics plays,
maybe in my head,
maybe for the dead,
maybe all she said
just sounds foreign
& lyrical now.

She’s floating
toward the ceiling
& I don’t know how
the warped tether
finally snapped.

I just know
she’s never
coming back.





Published by Jennifer Patino

Poet in Michigan.

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