because I was already so sick (thank you)

The hard ways of that summer,
palpitations that knocked my body down
and held it level with the water
mouth skimming breath for months

a tired I didn’t know existed,
one that tied my bones to the
ground with heavy quick fingers,
one that bound my brain in gauze.

I couldn’t leave the house for months then,

so being able to walk now past the end of my block,
to stand long enough to wash the dishes,
able to read more than subtitles, to write any words at all—

these are blessings I didn’t expect.