the simulation is: the universe
is a metronome
ticking
away at the (nothing)
                                    real estate
it has yet to consume
                                    reality
gaslights us to
upsell individual importance

because I (want to)                    believe
my atoms are unique
scrambled
in such a way
that if I slip
on ice
& crack my head
on concrete
the universe won’t recycle me
it will just begin again

(originally published in Remington Review, Summer 2019)