April's flames made the friendliest fire,
although I feared they would
char and consume my life
and leave it but smoking cinders.
Friendly, fragile...
a single tear could put them all out.
April's flames shone brighter than the
sun.
They shed new light.
I could see things that
the shadows kept to themselves,
disguised as if some kind of treasure,
but the truth was that they were only
burdens.
April's flames lit two packs of cigarettes,
thirty-one thousand candles,
and a cozy fireplace
for thirty-one nights
where I would sit and rest knowing
the fire had not gone out.
I could feel it back then.
April's flames were lit in March
and snuffed abruptly in mid-May,
but if I have some lighter fuel
I'll rekindle them some August day.