Hello, I repeat, hello.

Never before, never again
Grab it now or miss your chance
Striking while the iron glows red
Hesitate and you're lost.

While staring at the lonely sea
A million dreams, a world of pain
Drifted away, into the ether
Like motes of dust, like dust.

A card, a candle, a stone
Talismanic gifts
Trifling, yet magical
A bone, a piece of glass.

(I looked up and saw the psychic dogs of Saturn, exploding in midair, a freestyle dance, an awakening, a celebration, in the throes of ecstasy, in the depths of grieving, alive, dead, a stew of ritual and utter chaos, those dogs, those dogs, I witnessed it all. Their carcasses fell to earth like gifts of manna. It all made sense to me, then. And, even when I closed my eyes, my mind retained those vibrant images. There was a joy in their fiery decimation. It was a script that had to be played out. The universe is a cruel and awesome stage.)

She was a little girl
She handed her brother a gem
She told him "Abracadabra"
He gave that gem to me.

(The fish erupted from that lonely sea, silvery and lithe, aglow in the moonlight. I awaited the resolution of their arc, the re-entry into their watery home, but it wasn't their home at all, and they were really ships, and they proved it with their flight. I half expected they would explode, it seemed to be the way, but they disappeared into the stars and a hush fell over the world. I don't know what it means, but it felt preordained, and I sensed that it had always been and always would be.)

I walked across some graves
Trying to step lightly
The holly leaves were prickly, beneath my bare feet
My friend suggested I walk "crunchy."

Many years ago
A ghost called my name
I answered back, I asked "Who's there?"
But it was just the wind.