my insolent feet are twin spectres

i have slept for so many years

silent in this place

undisturbed by the mall-walkers

the bored employees wheeling

displays in-and-out, in-and-out

of their little shops

the players at the plastic

game store tables

telling stories filled

with wonder and terror

i have slept, their movements

light against my perception

white noise, radio static,

a whisper under fluorescent lights

a faint brush against

faded floors and neglected walls

their presence a soft blanket

the faint scent of pretzels

seeping into my dreams

melding seamlessly

with my nostalgic

night visions

but you,

oh child of the past,

oh denim-vested pack rat

of patches and pins

oh wanderer lost in time

your bootsteps ring

as loud and heavy

as they did all

those years ago

you bounce off walls

look at everything and nothing

opine about what used to be

and push toward something

else with equal fervor

i hear your voice

everywhere at once

calling out across the theater

for some stranger

to play in the aisles with you

complimenting an old woman

on her band t-shirt

yelling at your favorite

arcade game

that you were never

any good at

oh creature of longing

and dismay

pockets full of dusty dreams

and pay phone quarters

in every piece of your clothing

that sparkles, clashes,

rattles with unnecessary

belts and chains

flashes a thousand patterns

put together

in no pattern at all

oh mis-timed alarm clock

oh ghost of the old world

oh forgotten youth

please let me sleep.

my bones have no comfort

left to offer you

no refuge from a world

of neglect and sharp

angles

that awful mix of responsibility

and lack of agency

that you try to wash out

of your mouth with bubblegum

and brightly colored cookie icing

don’t you know

how rude it is

to haunt the dead?