Dust settles between this continental divide
I, on one end, a fleeting candle wick
Burning slowly, hopelessly against this cold
And time, like fallen clouds,
Does everything to hide the sun.

I practice dancing to sounds of silence
Distances become all too familiar
and like melted wax, I fall to the floor

hoping that before you walk away
you will break this barricade of silence
that time has built around us

All the sparks, the flames, there are embers in my soul, always warm and blazing in your proximity,

I didn't know what Fire was until I knew You.

warm, bright words don't reside in your heart.
an ice wall blocks the way as they depart.
a shy, humble smile, "oh, it's no big deal,"
and those words are suddenly forced to kneel.
the icicles ***** your weary shoulders,
forming gashes, leaving you so much colder.

too much warmth? you burst into flames.
too little? you're frozen and maimed.
your hands, scarred and worn,
rub in vain, ready to mourn
as you look over the wall
to stare at the glow that enthralls.

DEAR PENPAL PEOPLE, never knew before:?


mind fluttered
heart triggered
or was it the opposite?
to not feel
is constantly abandoning the real
or was it overthinking?
white sun
yellow moon shun
or was it the lamp in my room?
exclamation mark
question bark
or was it me confused?!
flames left turned in hurt
backs flared then burnt
or was it them that slammed the door?
now a missing bone
from an unsolved puzzle all alone  


                                                                                            -----ravenfeels

It is a quarter past June, and
          already it seems like a record setting summer.
Sprinklers and the scent of chlorine filled pools,
          as I walk in my street-worn shoes to my sanctuary.

The lifeless blacktop park where
          my will and the heat-embracing pavement meet.
A well-manicured backyard tree hangs its verdant leaves
          just over its owner’s fence.
Like a lifeline for life reaching out to me.

I stick and I move,
          as the sweat cleans the dirt and despair from my face.
Like a sunshine superman, I drink UV rays into my bones.
          Alone I feel whole.
The disinfecting flames of summer
          have begun to melt the cold rot encasing my soul.

How enticing her flames must be
that even after I am deformed with burns
I always come back
no longer ignorant of the pain
but just as enticed by the flames
as to run my fingers through her flickering hair once more
scorching them

or
discarding stitches
as I graze her soft fervent cheek

for shock eases the pain into warmth
and when I am to be burned at the stake
It won't be the ropes that restrain me
you hold me tight and whisper
"stay."
and I will
and I do
even as my comrades call from beyond the flames
you squeeze my hand
and I discard them like dry grass

For when the fumes fill my lungs
I grin
my breath weary
her lips on mine
sparing just enough air to continue