Ghost Stories – Christine E. Ray

my dead
haunt me nightly
in technicolor dreams
rich with detail
texture
surround sound dialogue
seemingly unaware
that they have passed
through the veil
only dwelling here,
in my fertile unconscious
often I wonder
if it is bad etiquette
to point out that
they are gone?
does Miss Manners have guidelines
for social interactions
with poltergeists
with sleepless spirits?
seems rude somehow
to bluntly point out
you’re dead, you know
insensitive
discourteous
ironic
as they seem
so vividly alive
it gives me pause
makes me wonder
if the message they carry
is how easily someone
like me
can declare them dead
while simultaneously
deluding myself
that I still breath
my heart still beats
long after blood
has frozen solid
in my veins