Spillway Review
Poet in Residence
November 2004- January 2005

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From a Dream

for Christopher


by Amanda Auchter

No one is here this late.
I break into your office, dig
through file cabinets, locate

my name in charts and diagrams.

I tape my hands to the wall,
watch my fingers imprint,
little hooked grooves

of skin & sweat.

I rip away; leave a dangle of nail
& blood. I spin in a chair, dust clocks,

water your plant. I kneel in front
of your red couch, feel
for a warm spot, an indentation,

trace fibers, your smell
of coffee and soap.

I press my face into the cushions,
stuff my hands into the ripped pillow,

its tangles slip out like a secret.

Later, you wake me,
lean over, mouth open.

Your words are slow black things.
The lights swing by their bony cords.

I say,

read me, read me.

The words bury me in their white trails.