Clutching the shredded tatters of my pride and dignity, I trudged to the office hours of my math instructor every week, seeking an explanation for the increasingly mysterious problems in the textbook. My instructor welcomed my presence as she would welcome the Angel of Death. Irritated? She was terrified. Explain… the problems? Articulate… the steps? Relate… the concepts? I would ask questions, and she would respond by completing yet another sample problem as fast as she possibly could, blushing nervously. I felt like I was on a Star Trek episode. “Captain, I think I understand… the creature communicates through multivariable calculus problems!”

i'm a fountain of blood
in the shape of a girl
you're the bird on the brim
hypnotized by the whirl

drink me—make me feel real
wet your beak in the stream
the game we're playing is life
love's a two way dream

leave me now—return tonight
tide will show you the way
if you forget my name
you will go astray
like a killer whale trapped in a bay

i'm a path of cinders
burning under your feet
you're the one who walks me
i'm your one way street

i'm a whisper in water
a secret for you to hear
you're the one who grows distant
when I beckon you near

i'm a tree that grows hearts
one for each that you take
you're the intruders hand
i'm the branch that you break

leave me now — return tonight
tide will show you the way
if you forget my name
you will go astray

like a killer whale trapped in a bay