I froze on Christmas
walking through downtown Brooklyn
emptiness  . . . not a soul
except for the crowds
outside the Cobble Hill Cinemas
with nothing to do
took photos
called ex-friends and new friends
texted and spit on the ground
drank an espresso and yelled
at the Christmas tree outside Borough Hall
drank another espresso
froze some more
walked past the only open bodega
and stepped in to warm up
walked past apples and oranges
and pretended to be interested in buying something
smoked a cigarette on the roof
and got heartburn on the way back
called everyone I never loved
and didn’t call the people I loved
skipped over hundreds of messages
and skipped over hundreds of years
as if tears, freezing on Christmas night,
below the twinkling gaze of the lost year.