I want a death
complete with all its rituals
where my friends break
under the shock of my departure
and weep
where they come to my body
to soften it one last time
The others
carry a cross after me
so my shadow doesn’t get lost
on its way to God
Let them open a mourning house
where those I knew
and those I never met
arrive
out of duty
eating dates
with grief stuck in their throats
I want a grave
with a marble headstone
and two small hollows
one for water
and one for pieces of bread
so that a bird may land on me
eat me slowly
and carry me into the sky
How hard it has been
to say
“I want to live”
But action speaks louder than words
and these days
the loudest action
is deathSo if I die
let my death
be filled
with the rituals
of life
