i miss how people i love used to laugh
with their lower eyelids overlapping their irises
like a sunrise below a hill.
but now they laugh like
they're contemplating the physics of their
heaving diaphragm, as perhaps it is an evolutionary survival mechanism
for forgetting to breathe
when faced with fantasy.

i miss how people i love used to cry
with their upper eyelids overlapping their irises
like the earth came off its top hinge
and the sunrise scene swung upside down.
but now they cry
like it's a chore on their to-do list;
an exchange of Edible Arrangements
from the kebold and harris homes.