you’re already dead

i always think you’re dying.
isn’t that the silliest thing?

you have long been dead
and in the ground

but sometimes while im washing the dishes
or folding the laundry
or driving to the grocery store

Panic grabs me by the throat and squeezes,
hard,
and i worry you might be dying

and then it punches me low in the gut
because  i remember
that you’re already dead.