pet black hole

i have always tended the void. 
some people have guardian angels.
i have a black hole. my earliest memories
are of bringing him/her handfuls of spearmint leaves
from the bush crawling up the side
of the old house on franklin street.
the black hole is much gentler than
people assume. we curl up with each other.
the black hole is slightly warm. hums 
with all the universes he/she has swallowed.
when i put my ear to the black hole i can
hear all sound at once. i can also her
sounds turned inside out. the other side
of a shout & the inverted bird song 
from a planet with red dirt. the black hole
is the best creature to get sad with. 
when i want to weep the hole says,
"why don't you devour?" in my family,
you do not eat when you're hungry you eat
when there is an emptiness. all hunger
is emptiness, but not all emptiness 
is hunger. with the hole i feast on
mailboxes & knuckles & car kill. 
i do not usually feel better when we 
are done swallowing but i do feel less alone.
company is made from whatever 
you can find. i take my black hole
for walks in the late winter rain. i am troubled
sometimes that the hole has gotten smaller.
i had always hoped i could grow 
my black hole. that maybe one day he/she
would take me into his/her maw.
i have seen her/him open his/her mouth
& it is shimmering & gold. i would love
to be drenched in that light. instead,
my pet black hole has continued to 
get smaller. i feed her/him as much 
as i can. i ask her/him sometimes,
"do you want to take me now?" the black hole
always declines. says he/she wants
to be hungry with me where the moon
is still huge & on the right day 
we both feel soft. i cannot disagree
but when she/he is gone i do not know
who i will have to witness my cravings 
for the dark syrup of the nothing place. 
at least for now i bring the black hole
an ear of feed corn & a shoe. he/she is delighted.