embossed in chimerical concepts,

raising the two dimensions into three

such that i am greeted at grocery stores,

waved to by colleagues, asked questions.

but like an old balloon, i leak sentience

until my visage, flattened, flutters home

in the wake of a broad blustery wind.

i miss warmth, and feeling something

other than the cloak of profound loneliness,

and waning under its labyrinthine weight.

goddamn this feckless brain, goddamn

these fickle hands, goddamn the mirage

of happiness that feels like water, wet

and cold against my back.

goddamn it all.

jcb