It'll burn out your eyes
A million souls looking up in wonder
Melted eyes from their sockets
Running, black, down their cheeks
Jaws slack, and teeth falling
From their mouths

Blood, black, running out
From ears, noses, mouths and
Eyes, like horrid mascara
Distorted make up in a horror
But all they see is awe
After the winds that came

Blown fire, a storm where
The very gusts, not gentle
Nothing like a summer breeze
But something that scores
Hair, skin and lips from the bones
Peeling dripping faces back

And yet, they stare,
From eyes which no longer see
Screaming from mouths
That don't make a sound
A chorus of discord
In a firestorm

An artificial sun
Lit on a planet of life
Bringing death
Upon wings of fire
Like a blackened angel
Loosed on an unsuspecting world

Mushrooming up, billowing
Catching and pushing through
An atmospheric nightmare
Ripping the very last air
From the lungs of their children
Spreading out, blocking the sun

Apocalyptic in nature
But no prophet could predict
Their Gods all deserted now
Figments of imagination
For a world that has forgotten
All, for a single glance

Such is the danger wrought
After the fires burn out
The seas boiled away
Leaving beaches of bones
Cracked Earth, continents split
Rivers now, flowing lava home

It's the burden of nature
A beauty of the universe
When stars and orbits
Push and pull, gravity
Of bodies, beyond control
Black holes, spin, blink up

In a moment, it's gone
A whole world, no warning told
The price that is paid, worth
But, be careful, Love
This is your smile's price
I'd give the world for

Clop, Shuff-clop
Worn boots worn well
Their journey, mine
This path travelled
Paved against soles

Low brimmed hat
Wraps the mind
The sun beats on it
A hammer wears it thin
Sharp eyes, peer forth

Horizen's low, scant miles
Always just too far, just too close
One step in front of the other
Home is a sort of walk
All the ceilings my stars

Scrapped leathers worn
A mess from tumbles and scars
Hair once short, now unkempt
Held back, with a short throng
Not for for naught, simple necessity

In my mind's eye, the road isn't there
The clothing isn't worn, not thin
No thought for the sun or night
Even the road, so hard,
Nary a moments thought

Thoughts stay focused
Her lips so soft, unlike the journey
Eyes so deep, refreshing pools
The coolest water; the driest day
Dramatic curves warm, coldest winter

A dry hot wind, chafe his leathered face
Any observer, wouldn't notice
Either twitch, a momentary rise
Or flinch, surprise recognized
In fact, he didn't notice

There was nothing, then or now
To distract from the path
Either paved road, or dirt path
No matter the twists or curve
Nothing to lose his way

There is one end, for him
Maybe two, but that's no concern
Just her, and by her side
Always looking, just to find
Another stranger, to share the ride

There are chains and there are chains
Sometimes to bind, bound never to fly
Or to keep, stagnant in place
A soul, chained, forever staring
In to the empty of what might have been

An anchor, although a brace
Holding one to a point
A place, maybe in time
Or to a feeling, reoccurring
Reliving moments, hours or days
But an anchor is always a choice
Personal and a choice

Dropping an anchor in a life
In mine, her choice
Brings me to her sea
Turbulent seas, always a storm
Cloudy, heavy crying skies

For me, it's less obtrusive
To be what she needs, relies on
Holing her bow pointed in to the wave
Scary, it looms above: wall of water
To her, the most frightening feeling
Trusting another, Me, to hold her steady
While she works the rudder

The anchor is complete trust
Her on the rudder, me digging in
To weather the storm, the waves, the wind
Keeping us together
And trusting the chain

Walking, your gait memorizes
Not when you know it
That doesn't count
Because that's different
When you don't know

That's special
A moment removed from
History, unremembered
And is all mine, no one else's
It's not a bounce, or a walk
Almost a combination of both
When every foot touches the ground

Your eyes glisten, uncried tears
And I hope you never cry again
I've been paying more attention
Just lately, and they're so animated
All around back and forth,
But with a sort of tunnel vision
Focused, but in the past

Hands move every word
Flying across the room
Around and around,
Blood tipped nails, work words
Crafted by the sharpest rapier tongue
Building, emphasizing every thought
A crazy, flurry of words, fingers and hands

It's with every breathe you take
Every action, you flow, glow
Fingers to toes
Eyes to heels
Absolutely

And always, yes, I do

There are some
Who wear make up
To hide behind
Like a mask
Or to be someone their not

Some have worn it
For so very long
That they have become their mask
Or maybe the mask becomes them
Like a ritual, some pagan act
Antiqued and traditional
Some feel naked without it

But I saw you
Eyes stripped of all
No highlights, outlines or lashes
For all intents, completely naked
And behind the mask

And you were beautiful
Softest, smoothest lines
Untouched, raw and unmolested
Purest clean and untainted
And I loved you, that much more