INSTRUCTIONS FOR LEAVING THE HOUSE

(to be continued)

 

1. if the bed doesn't fit through the door frame

    you must smash it with a hammer 

    (irregular pieces, and scatter them

    on the curb like birdseed)

 

2. This one's tricky: Take

    what you can carry but

     let your arms freely swing. 

    (A tote bag is great for this.)

 

    If you have a car, fill it to a comical degree

    but leave room in the captain's chair

    for a navigator or lover

    or someone, ideally, who's both. 

    

    They can hold

    a crate of plants on their lap

    and a jar of loose change at their feet. 

 

3. If you leave anything behind, 

    it'll be deducted from the overall weight

    of your soul or whatever,

    so try sweeping up 

    your crumbs and shadows. 

 

4. If you're attending a festival 

    bring some candies for the crowd

 

5. Blue sheet, poetry book, pens, notebook, 

    wallet, phone, keys, mask, lucky pebble,

    cough drops, swimsuit (even though you'll

    probably go naked), regular book (a novel or 

    something about history), prose book by a poet

    (little winks and yawns), grapefruit, granola

    bars, apple, water bottle (with water), knife, 

    bandana, reefer, lighter, pipe or papers, guitar, 

    skateboard, sailboat, bed (if it's in one piece), 

    mattress