Bad Thing

by Lindsay Isaac-Lalla

He said the first-thing, unencumbered:

See what chance brings time

Going through to see what sparks about himself

Feeling pretty close to fine —

and the words building our bonds

Which I’ve been searching

Necessarily a bad thing

So give me that bad thing.

He’s been head under the water, heart full of blue,

Struggling to find a sense of time or place.

Unsure of the wild,

Turned around and thrown about —

Ache in the heartbeat,

All the way through.

I want the whole of you, pure you, straight you.

But please, please, please

Come home to yourself,

Come home to free.

And give me that bad thing.

And the two of us now, seeking our way home,

Stumbling blind, drifting hard off the path.

Let me hold your coffee, while you tend your fire,

Burn all our heartaches to light a new start.

So give me that bad thing,

Give me that bad thing.

Give me that bad thing.