36 votive candles

Burning in my room

The overpowering aroma

Of patchouli incense

And Rachmaninov's piano concerto no. 2 in C minor

Softly lapping at my ears.

My own personal theme music

All that's missing to finish the cliche

Is an unlit cigarette

And a half-emptied bottle

Of spice rum with a glass beside it.

Piano keys piercing my soul

So soft

I half expect the bottle to shatter

But the bottle is not there,

Just me

Staring at the black & white photos

I taped to my writing desk.