Darkness covers the mine
and every color falls to the
bullet of black. Fingers,
numb and cold
continue to claw along
jagged edges of
granite and mica
toward the faintest
dream of light.

Teeth struggle to grind
meals of bitter coal
broken into tiny parts.

There is solace in
those few moments
when eyes may shut
and lush green landscapes
invade the murky quiet.  

They will not imagine
death in a place
darker than the grave
as bodies fight fading
into a cleft of
Earth's damp pit.

They emerge,
covered in soot
and eyes tear as
light penetrates every cell,
as magnificent as the first time
they ever noticed the sun,
then a glorious gust of wind,
like God was blowing a kiss.