It’s Useless to Cover Your Nose and Throat
Ghosts never come to us, but if they do
It may just be to try to smooth us into death.
They will not want to grab and pull us through
To their invisibility. Our breath
Is far too warm and wet. It would disgust
Their lungless lungs. It’s far more likely we
Would breathe the insubstantial shimmering dust
That they present to air before we see
Their atomless shame. Infected our lungs
Might cough and cough, but we could never purge
Them of the taint. Ghosts are forbidden tongues
So they can’t lick us in attempts to merge
With mouths and life again. Wraiths moan and chafe
Against our beds. We think that we are safe.
