ALTITUDE SICKNESS

In the thin air below the Rockies

I fought for every breath

like a deep sea diver

surfacing

My lungs collapsed

My joints ached

& all the blood ran from my face

My stupid mouth hung open & grew parched

as I panted around Denver

like a man with the head of a fish

& yet I was so happy

to be with my daughter

my heart turned infinities

in my aching chest

like an exotic fish trapped

in an aquarium