"Standing firm on caked-mud grass, I am
The rock, immobile in the presence of flames
That pursue life sources, tearing down
Crooked pine after crooked pine,
Once an ancient home.
Dreams devoured hiss and shriek as they are lost
Like memories, though a new song bellows from above
A waterfall amid speckled desert, or perhaps
Just as satisfying and just as odd as such,
An escape impossible to man.
The fires churn and blaze, but oh, love,
Nothing unsettles the gaze of your eyes upon
The helpless stone, at wit's end
Within a coquelicot casket, hot on the flank,
No longer a promise of serenity.
All things fall to fire but you, my dear
Tend to stand amongst the ashes, lift your head
And cackle in the face of danger, even when you feel small you
Build me up to mountain-size
From only a voiceless pebble.
Descent lies upon me but when
Smoke lies thick, I have lain still but you
My sweetest, have never displayed the path this clearly
Glazed with candy blossoms
Melted away a lifeless trap.
The distance is too far for anyone to see from
Where the flames have chased me, or where you perch
And we're so far that we can't touch, all we do
Is plummet down together, fight the fog and
Deny a hopeless, effortless death.
For you, in truth, my love
Are not measured by ordinary, but extraordinary means
In nature and in purpose, you
Have blessed the boulder with a wish,
A cog that had forgotten to dream.
No matter what lies before us, this matter
Of committed wish, so beautiful amidst your
Threads which envelope me in radiance
Has ascended me to lightness of a feather
Once a heavy stone.
Human's greatest mystery is what
Becomes of us when we fall for another
Of our breed, of blood, and whether
We should ever sacrifice at all, or
Cower in fear amongst our familiar fires.
For you, I take the plunge."
-Dani, June 2, 2017
