5000 years ago
the shamans and the medicine workers looked into the fire

they saw me and you
you and I
They saw us

They called us gods

smoking cigarettes
They thought we breathed fire

getting in and out of cars, trains, and planes
They thought we could move between the realms of living and dead

using computers,
watching tv,
talking on cellphones
They thought limit was the thing not within our understanding

the fire of the future showed them
what they thought were gods
they couldn't hear our flaws
They couldn't smell our decay

Through the fire
They saw gods

in the mirror
most only see rot

in the mirror
most can't see past misplaced shame.

ⓒ Christopher F. Brown  2015