Brittle fingers stretch
limb from limb, etch
piercing minuets against
the roaring numb;
deliver sharp secrets
through our desperate eaves.
Our frayed woes drawn fore
& aft across plucked
heartstrings taut with resin.
Each harbored note
drips bitter with ancient
nuance; a hollow crescendo
that sinks instead of climbs.
This refrain is
soured
in half-steps.
Midnight groans and shifts
its searing song a-lurch.
Cicadas chorus a thunderous
applause & we exhale.