khetto

So stalk the gutters barefoot, counting the drains,

until your feet turn black and your

eyes turn to diamonds;

and the colours of your iris

change with the swells of your pulse,

and blood chants in your ears

with past words spoken

and the stillness of vision

frames the brickwork like a picture.

but the stars

the stars

the stars through the clouds crowd around

in awe at the constellations on the ground!

and the lights speak in code

until the enigma is cracked

and you suppose that it’s souls,

transparent in the light.

So, like black petals that fall from a bush of red roses,

ash from the sky falls.

the heavens are burning

and I can but watch.