She lingered over her martini, an olive
floating gracefully in the gin,
vermouth and humor sitting dry on her tongue.
The summer evening slowly inched itself across the tablecloth
until the light from the candle at the center
hindered its crusade to bring on the dark.
I ran my hand over the flame, letting it lick the dent of my palm,
inching it further down until
the quick pain reminded me of that first pinprick of love
the night we met. Do you remember
the earthy smell of the apples slowly rotting under the leaves?
The world altering itself beneath our feet?
There was a sense of urgency back then, a need
for hastened fingertips and my lips to always be pressed to yours,
skin rubbed in raw emotion until it burned like kindling
in the night. Your eyes were golden
under the lanterns, your hands pale birds
swooping over your plate.
In that moment my skin burned for the ocean
of your curls across my hips,
the charm on your necklace to brush against my thigh,
the warmth of summer waves to pulse beneath my skin.
The storm has settled after a long summer.
The skies are clear, but the damage has been done.
I am charred, left abandoned in the ashes.
The humiliation during the wildfire led to my death.
The world I knew and loved disowned me.
But a baby bird had risen out of the ashes.
Despite its weak body, the newborn helped me onto my feet.
It led me away to start anew in a foreign world.
After all that had happened that led to this fire,
I know now that my old name is nothing but a memory
Left to be scorned by bloodthirsty eels.
Be free, young phoenix. Fly away and keep your voice close.
They'll be coming for you when they discover you're still alive.
It is better to let them think that you are dead
than attempt to kill yourself putting up a fruitless fight.
They can deceive the world all they like, but karma has its ways.
They will always be overshadowed by a much more unified flock.
But for now, I walk alone with no one but the baby bird perched on my shoulder.
I see a bit of my old life in it, but it possesses the need to change;
A quality that the world I left behind is too blind to see.
Be free, young phoenix. Fly away and keep your voice close.
They'll be coming for you when they discover you're still alive.
It is better to let them think that you are dead
than attempt to kill yourself putting up a fruitless fight.
By the time the bloodthirsty eels see me again, it will already be too late.
Their lack of intelligence is what I have to thank for getting me to where
I am needed most the whole time I have slaved away.
Too bad that they'll never know that I am not the poor unfortunate soul that I used to be.
The winter has arrived and the joys of Christmas Day have given the baby bird strength
To regain the fire that I have long-admired since I was no less than eight years of age.
The new year is around the corner and it is more than ready to spread its wings and fly
Like it did four years ago. It amazes me to see how kids grow up so fast.
Be free, young phoenix. Fly away and keep your voice close.
They'll be coming for you when they discover you're still alive.
It is better to let them think that you are dead
than attempt to kill yourself putting up a fruitless fight.
It is no longer our battle anyway for our destiny lies far away from this mom-and-pop.
*
The wind changes and
'controlled burns'
become fires of
deforestation,
burning many
animals and baby birds
alive,
causing others
defenestration.
saiom shriver
Camping
By jfarrell
“Toast. A nice golden brown colour, please.”
A blue jet of flame incinerates my bread on it’s skewer.
I brush away my singed eyebrows
And look at Karla.
“Can we try that again please, without the cremation?”
Karla bathes the second slice
Within a warm orange flame.
“Perfect!”
I run over, hug Karla
And give her a big kiss on the cheek.
Karla burps in embarrassment
And a blue jet of flame incinerates my tent.
“Hmmmm… Okay, maybe we won’t go camping this easter…
“How about finding some bridges….
“to redesign in your unique fashion.”
Building Bridges
By jfarrell
Watch them burn…
Isn’t it beautiful?
That black, poisonous cloud, 25 years over South-East London…
Last time I saw my mum.
The pagoda pub….
Back then… burned down many times since,
With many different names…
Last time I saw my dad.
“Jim, you’re so negative……”
“Jim, you should really change your act…”
At least, on this one, I struck the match.
Last time I saw my, so-called, ‘friends’.
I’ve done my building bridges;
And all got spat back in my face;
Now I hold the matches
And I will set light to any bridge I see..
Take my hand and stand with me,
In the centre of the inferno;
The raging fire of bitterness;
The popping and thundering of burning hurt.
Put your arms around my waist,
And dance with me,
As if this was the last night on earth….
And now, is all we have.
It Sounded Like Popcorn
By JFarrell
It sounded like popcorn
Was my first thought
A lot of popcorn
At one in the morning
Opening the bedroom door
And turning on the light
To find myself blind
As a wall of thick, black smoke engulfed me
Going to my balcony
And looking over the edge
To see bright, angry orange flames
Licking at the walls below me
Grabbed coat, 2 bottles of water
And a towel
Knocked door to door
Warning the neighbours
Went back to do the other side
But opening the door to that area
The smoke was too thick
And I retreated
Ours was not a serious fire, thankfully
And was quickly ended
I cannot even begin to comprehend the events and loss
In the West London fire
My deepest sympathies and prayers are with you
As I’m sure are the prayers of many others
And, again, I’d like to thank the emergency services
And all those who helped
Love does matter and can heal us all
I doubted I would find real, mutual love for the longest time.
That is only because I've looked in the wrong places and have fallen hard every time I thought
I found a missing part of me.
The problem with me is I don't fit in when I'm in any other group.
All around me in my daily life, I end up doing things I didn't want to do.
My life is getting stuck between a rock and a hard place when I choose
To be something I feel is right for me.
You're not hard to please for you are a fellow artist who shares my passion and attraction.
We color each other's worlds and we help each other out when we need it the most.
I give you my passion and you give it back in return.
We are not dependent on one another because we can take care of ourselves.
The sea leads to many places and although I have not landed where I needed to go,
You found me and led me in the right direction.
With you and me together, "lost" has no meaning.
We are simply taking our time to get to where we need to be.
The forsaken world and everything that was wrong with it will be far behind
Once I leave what destroyed me before and look for who I am.
The chains that keep me from breathing no longer exist
When I am somewhere else in the consciousness hidden within.
The art I color is vital to me as taking a breath.
Likewise, the more we are next to each other,
The more I see how selfless and warmhearted you are.
The way you treat me thaws my own heart until there is a flame that surrounds it.
A flame that only burns when you and I continue to bond.
Only you can see and feel how special it is to me that you make me feel that way.
I dream of us meeting face to face so we can make our artistic worlds come to life.
You teach me many things that I hold onto in my life.
Being with you helps me resist temptation that hinders my goals.
Speaking my tongue to you helps me become wiser in knowing the right things to say.
Presenting my own art to you helps me gain the courage to keep blossoming until my colors bloom like summer flowers.
More importantly, revealing my hopes and dreams to you gave me the escape from misery I longed to achieve.
In return for your kindness, I give you my passion and complete our missing soul.
To truly build up trust, all we have to do for each other is stay and that's what I will do for you.
Demons jump amongst the tortured souls,
They skip across streets leading nowhere,
And hop over valleys of gloom.
They’ve built walls,
Destroyed dreams,
Obliterated all hope.
They whisper secrets and mistruths,
Spread gossip like 3rd world diseases,
Hold no accountability before moving on.
Demons blind the eyes,
Mute the mouth,
And deafen the ears.
Living in a world of fiery hell
That no one else can feel.