Lay the carpet down on me,
Glue me under the padding and woven threads
Of faded pink and green.
Trap me in that layer of memory,
Between the spot of red wine from New Year's Eve,
The year the world was supposed to end
And the tar you forgot and stepped in
Patching the driveway in 78.

I don't like it when you use tape measures
Around my feet and under the baskets of flowers.
Can you stop saying the word tile?
Because it is so dirty gathered with mildew
In my bathroom shower.
I want to smell Clorox bleach,
Let it make my fingerprints disappear.

Can you tell me who I am?

Tonight I won't watch your hand shake
As you write 5 feet by 6 feet, 2 inches
With you flat pencil sharpened with a knife.
You've stirred up so much dust
That I want to dance to a song I can't remember.
Can't we take off our shoes and feel naked
Against the cold white concrete?

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