Vultures

A product can be authentic;

an object cannot.

This presents a problem.

An identity can be authentic;

an experience cannot.

“How was your sleep experience?”

asks Marriott.

Praise or blame

is the only legitimate response.

2

Vultures wheel over Miami.

A sign that appears

day after day

is not a sign.

The library boasts a fine collection

of books written in private

languages.

3

Identity is made

of select experiences.

4

If you are genuinely sick,

the leaves recede

and the flickering holes between them

come forward—

not angels, but

unnamed objects