i
take
careful
time to count
the seconds between
each of your breaths. i watch the rise
and the fall of your ribcage, enraptured like some sort
of sundial. i mark my dawns by
your sweet, slow inhales.
you exhale,
and night
seeps
in.

your
lungs
grow with
air like the
heads of sunflowers,
seeds spiraling. little pods of
life. i think of salt and of summer while you dream of
the soft resting place of my lap.
while you sleep, i wait
for the sun
to rise
with
you.