I stare into the flames,
mesmerized by the shapes,
bathed by the heat of it,
I watch the vapor wavering above the coals,
the shift in color as it rises,
licking quickly toward the sky.

I love the sky, it's depth and beauty,
the stars call back coldly to me,
aloof in their sovereignty of a land I cannot reach.

A part of me feels sadness for my tiny earthly flames,
Reaching pitifully toward a cold uncaring sky,
I long to keep them safely bound, as I am,
to protect them from the empty warmthless depth of space which arcs above,
To keep them close to one who loves them,
but alas, I cannot..

I love the flames, the fire,
the way they dance, the warmth they so selflessly provide,
I do not wish to free them to their empty trek alone,
along an empty and forboding path.

But they are not mine for the keeping,
They laugh at my well-meant foolishness and desert me,
I am left to the empty night as my fire dies down,
all it's light and heat escaped from their earthly bond into the air above.

Alone I gaze once more into the sky,
marvelling at the austere beauty painted above me,
I wonder at this world of ours and this heart of mine,
How is it that I can love such different things?
This sky which stands so still and distant,
beyond reach, and unreciprocating,
and those flames which had been so close and warm,
yet so quickly abandon me for a place I cannot follow.

01/10/2004

Posted on 01/11/2004
Copyright © 2024 Leandra K Brossard