elements of life

i taught you once
the makings of life
sun and water
dust and wind
wind and fire
sun and dust

and i recalled mentioning
different tastes; bitter sour
sweet salty pungent
that make up memories
of life

remember when we reminded
each other the sounds that made
life horses on carousel
pebbles skipping on the surface
of the sea, and eggs splattered
on the scalp?

and i taught you what was
frightening rapid footsteps along
the alley the silence
of cicadas, dogs grunting
and ripping of soft cloth....

and of things that were
visually terrifying; purrulent
prominences barren remains
of vitality and
the darkness

that now is the
canopy underneath which
i find no
sustenance.....