the hanged man

Don’t leave me hanging upside down  
under the bridge of these canals  
where the water bites  
with icy claws  
and the fish gulp air like ghosts
 
All my blood rushes up  
through my brainstem  
into the rivers of my mind  
that scream at the floodgates  
of the coming blackout  
 
Where are you?
What am I doing here?
suspended, flailing undefended  
unable to answer the questions  
to the crimes I don’t know if I’ve committed  
 
Just tell me if there was poison  
in the kiss that made me lose my sanity  
or if my sanity poisoned your lips  
that dragged me willingly  
beneath the bridge of this fate  
that I can no longer see  
jerked by the reverse noose of my ankles
seeking to drown my face in your lies  
 
Death is like a sonnet  
to the sound of water
thudding against a distant shore  
where my bones turn to sand  
to be lit up in the glass of your windows  
reflecting the daylight  
of times gone past  
among the shells of the secrets we used to tell  
 
© Indie Adams 2014