Answer Night

Answer night when she calls to you
See this white scar of perennial tissue
See the asphalt growing flowers through a cracked tooth
When she calls to you, answer night
Answer night when she digs and howls
Like a bitch’s ripped lungs bending chains and vowels
See the sun left his razor in the guesthouse
So when she digs and howls you’ll know how to answer night
Answer night with flint or magnesium
By splitting open a strangled curtain
With bleach to chew through a forgotten stain
With blood the color of a retired radio station
Answer night when she lowers your head
See this furnace, see this spool of thread
You count the bruised leaves as you rake the storm from your bed
When she lowers your head, answer night