by Stacy Black
As tedium is to lethargy.
As Dante is to being lost in a dark wood.
As graduate writing programs are to the professionalization of American letters
and the hazy intersection of art and commerce.
As a self-reinforcing feedback loop is to the stranded time-traveler.
As a lost astronaut is to you awake at 4 AM,
weighing the need to pee against how warm and comfortable you are
adrift in the cosmos.
We’re all running out of oxygen
and also I learned cobalt
crucial for the manufacture of smartphones and other devices
and which is mined hellishly in exploited third worlds.
As Achilles is to the tent in which he sulks.
As people posting “vibes” on social media are to people
experiencing visceral reactions to said vibes.
As relaxing is to…
As acid is to hideous burns
is to the creation of the deranged killer
in the horror movie that was on
when I tried to kiss you.
As kissing a cat is to a cat who hates to be kissed.
As satellites are to irretrievability.
It’s a long way between planets and their stars,
their revolving molten cores.
As chemtrails are to the blue sky across which their feathery etchings disintegrate.
As a regular blue sky is to a sky that’s way too blue.
As I am to you and you are to somebody, anybody else.