laser-tag dusk soldiers 

let's ultra violet-- neon paint our prophecies 
on the sides of the cliffs--

tuck the sun into the caves & seal the tomb-- 

she will comb all the knots from her white-gold
hair-- dripping with wedding rings-- bells on
the rocks-- 

have you climbed the church towers lately?

have you figured out who tells the time
when to move forward?

this is laser-tag warfare--

this is red forever

& we were twelve & melting-- 
sweat sticking my blue t-shirt to my skin--

crouch with me in flowerpots--

buy yourself to the knees

there is nothing to be understood
about this poem other that the war
was already coming before
the first stanza--

they had already purchased the
plastic tanks

my brother was already a solider

metal helmet catching bombs-- we wore
our snow boots in the winter & trekked
out to the space behind the garage
where no one from the house could see us--

we got on our knees-- we made
camp-- we set glow-stick fires--

we made blood promises with
our pocket knife thumbs-- 

veins glowing in the violet light
of the new moon--

our hair stood up on the back of
our necks-- we grew wild & unbelieving
in mortality

tested the limits of our skin--

was it me or you who broke 
the wooden step on the way
up to the deck?

the roof caved in & by the roof
i mean the sky itself-- so heavy
with our imagined bullets 

oh, brother, is this a love poem?

how old are we even & how many
years have we been backyard-walking--
have we been telling each other
nightlight stories to fall asleep?

you are too old & i am only
twelve & four months old &

you got to be eighteen--

take your gun in both
hands when you leave the house
in the morning--

there are icicle teeth 
biting down hard--

there are mountains where we
once laid hand prints--

when we finally find out who has
been orchestrating time all along 
we will tell them to take 
the weekend off--

take turns
aiming at tombstones--

ricochet off mausoleum--

lay down in the unfilled graves 
& laugh-- arms across our chests 
like mummies--

oh look at us 
indigo & twilight

do you have your laser gun 
with you?

we'll need it when
we decide to walk back 
up noble street 

a dog barks at
a wind chime spirit--

you point your gun 
like a flashlight