with mighty hands, the universe

shoves us off the edge

before we have the chance to say

we don’t want her to wake us,

because we’re not ready

to leave this abyss of oblivion,

to become existent, tangible.

once real,

we shatter like glass

break down like weathered rocks

and crumble like castles.

plunging into an icy pool,

we free fall into existence—

awakening from this coma

in which the universe has cradled us.

shocked and shivering when we finally

hit the ground, because

as constellations connect in our minds

we realize that we are corporeal.

we are alive.