a friends witness

women walking with child
children laughing afraid dreaming
mothers in days slipping away
great grand old faces facing sun in wrinkles
all suddenly running
covering
burning
like oil and rice thrown in a flame
instant eternal cauldron of pain and despair
noble ignorance aside feasting on phosphorescent sands
pulls humanity back toward a lifeless sea
unenlightened unfulfilled unfurthered
stop it
all believers
be brave
some mornings come with no warning

meeting house after sunrise
(in 1965 norman morrison, stony run meeting executive secretary, poured kerosene on and immolated himself outside robert mcnamara’s pentagon office)

who may die

live still love calling
under infernocloud mushrooming miles
cast out away in steel ropes
withering shrinking in flamestorm
abandoned inside ringing glimmering wandering fire
uncrossed
wouldbegod casts and disappears
inkgreenblack oily smoke
i suppose a heavy metal bird should scream

shipping terminal at sunrise
(in 1965 a nine alarm oil fire threatened residents of wagners point who struggled on under criminal neglect by the city until the late 1990s)