Each time Lori
answered her phone
dopamine flushed
her central nervous system
clear of inhibitions
so she sang out loud
in public.
At night in a pub
others joined in
eyes torn from colored pixels
and disembodied transmissions.
Their inner ears
found new balance
returning lost feet.
At the sound of the chorus
eye-prisms broke light
into a mathematics remembered
from high school geometry
and applied goodwill
be grasped and stretched
like saltwater taffy.
Lori reconfigured songs
to reassemble friendships
shattered by misunderstandings
that flayed tender words
into hologram shadows
left low and dry
in floorboard cracks
by long ago spilled beer.
copyright © 2023 Kenneth P. Gurney
Umflop 