highway's hush rushing through bare trees
as fiery snapdragon blooms stillness
despite outreached branches mingling with the wind;
sky darkens the sun with deep bearing clouds burdened
ready for release-
each meticulously becoming
one with intersection
softening the blow of punishing heat.
no blade no leaf suspicious
just breathing and being
knowing not of time fleeting

be still my raging thoughts
ranging from bleakest futures
to none at all
whether they root in truth
or become that itself
i'll find out in the fall
- - -
fibers of my clothes stitched neatly
into channels visible under a lens
expand with each breath
and retreat unto themselves by ways of exhale
however soft
however sharp
matching the pace
shaky at start
steady? still i come apart
unraveled at the seams
loosely joined to begin with

what love do i know?
rooted in shadows
i call home
warmless golden corridors
no palm upon the windows

groveling at the feet of
clay pedestals
in these names and forms
full of shame shaped thorns
forcing breaths that fuel fire
whose foundation runs weak
like volcanic empires

there i stay serving
myself on a pyre
going up in flames to release
sparkling embers fading upward
crackling from remains
nothing but charred

here i am free
where you shelter in me
scaffolding lay repose
and everything you see
is not mine I suppose;
never was, but in the end:
this capricious rhythm's taken its toll
& the avaricious will never does as it's told.

trapped by failings of a guardian
protective duty check-marked

how can i make a meal
so full of comfort
to fill my insides
with a sense of belonging
like a warm genuine embrace
trustingly exclaiming
you belong here

what ingredients does it take
to feel at home of an elder
compassionately caring
for you
providing you warm shelter
from the storm outside