Conversation with the Devil

 

Leave the light on for me, Satan.
As long as you’re before me, within me,
slip me a little advice once in a while.

You of all people must sleep sound
through the night, wails for white noise,

the afterlife’s cold glow to guide you
to the bathroom if you ever wake at all,
and the heat of ten billion souls

to warm your midnight milk—Did you
crack a knowing smile when I fell

from God’s good graces? Leave the door
cracked for me, or slip a key beneath the mud-
caked mat of your chrome castle. Sometimes,

I hear you whistling just beyond the sight line,
and chase the brazen sound.