i’m listening to the orb
since 1992 i’m listening to the orb
for 25 years i’m listening to the orb
for more than half my life i’m listening to the orb
and i’m so bad at math and so easily
distracted
it took me more than 20 seconds to work the numbers out
but when i’m listening to the orb
i’m reminded of everything that’s ever happened to me since 1992

and i’m in an office now
reviewing documents for someone up above
but in my head it’s 1992 and 1993 and 1994 and 1995 and 1997 and 2001 and 2007 and 2017 all at once
and early tears well in my eyes just waiting for a nudge to spill
for all those behind me years
that somehow still exist buried between the lines
of the story i tell of myself to myself like:
who we were at midnight on empty, suburban streets, an orb album on repeat
who we were at midnight on a cold, hard futon, curled up in a confused panic, an orb album on repeat
who we were at midnight on another’s sofa, sleeping after a shift, an orb album on repeat
who we were at midnight on a windy Christmas eve, drinking whiskey alone in the dark, an orb album on repeat
who we were at midnight on a still, star-filled lake, talking dreams of coming futures, an orb album on repeat
who we were at midnight on a faded, rusty rocker, with a swaddled baby swaying, an orb album on repeat
who we were at midnight on an empty, suburban street, doing dishes left from dinner, an orb album on repeat

and on my screen are these words you’re reading now
sitting in front of another’s words you’ll never read
and in my ears the lazy lilt of ‘back side of the moon’
for i’m still listening to the orb over and over again
and i’m looking out the window
and i’m so high above the ground here, now
but not as high as those above me
and i want to jump through that double-pane wall of melted sand
shatter glass everywhere like a sharp-toothed rain
but i never want to fall when i’m listening to the orb
considering a crash
no, no, no

in every year i ever was
i ever am
listening to the orb
i just want to go on forever