we called them dead worlds
they were fashionable for a while
a blank slate where colored birds would roam
at one point I figured out how to cross the threshold
and I did visit a small one
before the end
it was simple enough,
I took the escalator and walked to the double doors
beyond I saw the flatlands
I shivered when I saw the monkey cages
the millions of shoppers
the modern architecture that held a promise of headstones
and weeds
I made a conscious choice and shed the resistance
I became smaller
more proper
I was a consumer
and I dipped my hand into the fish tanks,
swallowing minnows whole
I surrendered to the oblivion
and pretended it was simple
a spiral of want and fetish and desire
I abandoned my hopes and silver dreams
I walked with the rest of them
drawn with restless blood
over the winding streets and promenades
I exchanged my vitality for the promise of something else
something held out in front of me like gold on a string
visible and intangible
I moved in a lucid haze
my fingers turned green
I was carried for a time
then I carried others
I learned how to sing a dozen different songs
later I awoke
on the other side of the double doors
I saw the flatlands
the crumbled headstone
the red and blue birds
