I’ve lived my life by a window.
One whose shades are forever drawn.
Sunlight sleeps behind the blanket of cardboard and cotton.
To remind me of places that I might have gone.

Water is cool to the touch.
A welcome respite from the sweltering heat of expectation.
But you know you could drown if you swim too long or too much.

I stir myself to stand, to reach out for fresh air.
The brass door handle is a shard of glass and the door itself an iceberg too daunting to summit.
I pray I find my winter coat, and some warmth to cover my cares.