a new bearded face

a new bearded face,
a new identity,
unknown changes
to perceptual affects,
undiscovered methods
of wearing
this new mask.
seems most people
treat me more somberly.

like a black foggy night,
a curvy hilly road,
no streetlights,
one small headlight,
and a finite battery,
are my present projects.
at least i know
where i'm heading.

paranoia-inducing
meticulous emails
to powerful people,
who rarely respond.

staged tv melodrama,
easily solvable
with just a little
frank communication.

welcoming a
weakened typhoid
houseguest.
hoping he doesn't
slit my throat
in the night.

mudita
at my mother's
quitting her job,
and concern over
her surgery uncertainty.