The smoke of the ashes darkens my already ebony lungs A black that knows no bounds has settled on the desolate ground Being what caused this plague in the first place The sunrise no longer has meaning With no hope for the day to come For today will be the same as all preceding ones So I sit And I write Because that is what I do Yet I no longer write of beauty nor love For both have been stifled by the oppression of such a complete eradication Of all the things I once admired The things that lined the pages of all my pieces So as I sit and watch the smoke rise from my cup Seeing others walk by enticed By whatever is on their devices I put down my pen and close my book For there is no longer anything to write or romanticize To admire If there is no longer anyone to look