PLAY WITH ME

I. I Dream Through It

I wake up in a body unlike mine, water-filled. I wake up in a body unlike mine, blurry. I wake up in a body unlike mine, heated. I wake up in a body unlike mine, sharpsick. I wake up in a body unlike mine, water-filled.

I look in a mirror, and the name tag pinned to my chin says ANTEENA.

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II. It Dreams Through Me

I wake up and it is there, a shiver behind my eyes.

What meaning could my body have? When the alarm clock screeches, I hurtle out of bed and slide on clothes and run down the stairs, so hard each step on the ground. What meaning could my body have? When the alarm clock screeches, I fly away, up through the ceiling, through the clouds, into the cold and colder. What meaning could my body have? When the alarm clock screeches, I forget the name of my first pet (a frog). What meaning could my body have? When the alarm clock screeches, I hurtle out of bed and slide on clothes and run down the stairs, so hard each step on the ground. What meaning could my body have? When the alarm clock screeches, I take it apart and rewire it so that it will never screech again.

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Where does my body begin and end?

I try to be a gracious host. I take so much time folding the bedsheets. I touch my face, my lips, my ears. I think about what it means to hear and feel: how everything in the world is vibrating, and how that means something to us.

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III. We Dream Through Each Other

I wake up and we’ve changed; the world is no longer just our own. There is a  fire far away and we know because the insides of the trees are screaming, and the bugs that are inside the trees are swarming out; we can hear them, their exoskeletons bubbling. I wake up and we’ve changed; the world is no longer just our own. There is a shell on our backs buzzing so fast it’s like wings are trapped inside, and everything around us is a blur, because it’s buzzing us too. I wake up and we’ve changed; the world is no longer just our own. There is a million childhoods where our hearts should be. I wake up and we’ve changed; the world is no longer just our own. There is a stalagmite kissing a stalactite and they’re blocking the way to our door. It took them millions of years to form, but we want to leave, so we’ll break them. I wake up and we’ve changed; the world is no longer just our own. There is a fire far away and we know because the insides of the trees are screaming, and the bugs that are inside the trees are swarming out; we can hear them, their exoskeletons bubbling.

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IV. I Will Never Let You Back Into Your Body

We have no labels, Anteena. I’ve been an explorer in my own universe too long. In the UNIVERSE my universe is in, your universe is next to mine. I would like to go to your universe, Anteena.

In my universe, there are two planets and on both planets, there is a field with two daisies touching. The pollen on the daisies on both planets is from the same soul. My soul, Anteena. Can I bring that pollen out of my universe to you? What would happen to it? I know what would happen to it: everything. In my universe, there are two planets and on both planets, there is a field with two daisies touching. The pollen on the daisies on both planets is from the same soul. My soul, Anteena. Can I bring that pollen out of my universe to you? What would happen to it? I know what would happen to it: nothing. In my universe, there are two planets and on both planets, there is a field with two daisies touching. The pollen on the daisies on both planets is from the same soul. My soul, Anteena. Can I bring that pollen out of my universe to you? What would happen to it? I know what would happen to it: nothing. In my universe, there are two planets and on both planets, there is a field with two daisies touching. The pollen on the daisies on both planets is from the same soul. My soul, Anteena. Can I bring that pollen out of my universe to you? What would happen to it? I know what would happen to it: nothing. In my universe, there are two planets and on both planets, there is a field with two daisies touching. The pollen on the daisies on both planets is from the same soul. My soul, Anteena. Can I bring that pollen out of my universe to you? What would happen to it? I know what would happen to it: everything.

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