Wildfires and Maple Syrup
Every night from the shores of Malibu beach,
whether there is a witness or not, the sun
slips beyond the great ocean, which like us,
is made of salt water.
The spark of civilization has scorched
the land. We are the match, and we are the tinder
on the verge of spontaneously combusting.
Fire is not wild - humanity is: But like any blaze
humans have the hunger to devour everything
as long as there is oxygen; yet we are willing
to choke our species out of existence.
From the great fires a lingering
haze inches eastward, inescapable,
a reverse manifest destiny. The climate’s
steady climb Northward will soon snuff the autumnal flame
of New England’s maple trees.
One day regional lore will speak of recipes
that included a wondrous liquid that helped fuel
the locals and was mainstay of New England life. Soon
enough generations will know what it has, but not
comprehend what was lost. Isn’t that so, Mrs. Butterworth?
The president was metaphorically right -
we have left too many leaves unraked
and too much of our land has been mismanaged -
but he is a small, blind, literal man when
we need a visionary. And he is not Tiresias.
In 2017 my friend lost everything in the Pocket Wild Fire.
He asked, “How do we start rebuilding? The number
of decisions is staggering.” With universal pluck he added,
“We start here. We start now.”
Here I should insert something about the Phoenix
rising from the ashes,. I will save us
from that trite metaphor. A new symbol,
A new narrative is needed as the days of bread and circus expire.
But please, let’s save ourselves from the talk of rapture
or the promise of a martyr’s virginal reward. Inside
my laptop, a world is coded in zeroes and ones.
Yes, it’s a binary choice. It’s now a binary choice.
Tom’s fiction and non-fiction have appeared in Edible Nutmeg, The Feminine Collective, Faith, Hope & Fiction, The Artful Mind, The Sun, Turnstyle, and The Catholic Digest. His poetry can be found in the anthologies We Are Beat and Connecticut Bards and literary websites Wax Poetry & Art: Special Project: 45 Poems for the Revolution, naturewriting.com & iamnotasilentpoet.com
Every night from the shores of Malibu beach,
whether there is a witness or not, the sun
slips beyond the great ocean, which like us,
is made of salt water.
The spark of civilization has scorched
the land. We are the match, and we are the tinder
on the verge of spontaneously combusting.
Fire is not wild - humanity is: But like any blaze
humans have the hunger to devour everything
as long as there is oxygen; yet we are willing
to choke our species out of existence.
From the great fires a lingering
haze inches eastward, inescapable,
a reverse manifest destiny. The climate’s
steady climb Northward will soon snuff the autumnal flame
of New England’s maple trees.
One day regional lore will speak of recipes
that included a wondrous liquid that helped fuel
the locals and was mainstay of New England life. Soon
enough generations will know what it has, but not
comprehend what was lost. Isn’t that so, Mrs. Butterworth?
The president was metaphorically right -
we have left too many leaves unraked
and too much of our land has been mismanaged -
but he is a small, blind, literal man when
we need a visionary. And he is not Tiresias.
In 2017 my friend lost everything in the Pocket Wild Fire.
He asked, “How do we start rebuilding? The number
of decisions is staggering.” With universal pluck he added,
“We start here. We start now.”
Here I should insert something about the Phoenix
rising from the ashes,. I will save us
from that trite metaphor. A new symbol,
A new narrative is needed as the days of bread and circus expire.
But please, let’s save ourselves from the talk of rapture
or the promise of a martyr’s virginal reward. Inside
my laptop, a world is coded in zeroes and ones.
Yes, it’s a binary choice. It’s now a binary choice.
Tom’s fiction and non-fiction have appeared in Edible Nutmeg, The Feminine Collective, Faith, Hope & Fiction, The Artful Mind, The Sun, Turnstyle, and The Catholic Digest. His poetry can be found in the anthologies We Are Beat and Connecticut Bards and literary websites Wax Poetry & Art: Special Project: 45 Poems for the Revolution, naturewriting.com & iamnotasilentpoet.com