Why I Liked Marco Polo

The first time I felt loneliness I imagined running away

with a bandana full of food tied to a string.

Of course, this would make me lonelier,

but the thing about loneliness is that it tortures you

until you believe the only way out of its chokehold

is dying. So you tighten its grip.

My favorite bodies live without me,

slurping up buttered noodles

without remembering they’re my favorite meal.

What’s the point of anything if there’s no one

to share it with? I have tried carrots. Peaches. Milk.

All things enticing to convince those around me

to come closer. There’s a reason I appreciate echoes.

As a child, I liked playing Marco Polo in the pool

because someone always called back.

That was the rule. I was always answered.