The Art of Smothering
I remember when
you arsoned smoky fire
from a touch
on a turning page.
Now you’re
the spark arrestor
heat suppressor
insuring nothing
ignites.
The hazel extinguisher
of your foamwhite eye
drinks Molotov's cocktail dry;
my breath freezes
as it passes you
medusa'd to
ramparts of ice
ramparts of ice
protecting, imprisoning
a midnight of ash.
February 2012
55 burning ice cubes for the G-Man
Image: Eyjafjallajökull ash plume, by Gunnlaugur Þ. Briem on flick'r
Gunnlaugur Þ. Briem's photostream
Shared under Creative Commons 2.0 Non-Commercial License
Oh this is good!
ReplyDeleteAnna :o]
I think...there's a change in the weather. (as the Kinks once sang.)
ReplyDeleteBrrr, Witch.
Awesome write!
ReplyDeleteFantastic. These lines are especially poignant, IMO:
ReplyDelete"hazel extinguisher
of your foamwhitened eye
drinks Molotov's cocktail dry"
I love "arsoned" as a verb. Damn cool write, Hedge.
ReplyDeleteIs this about a Speed Reading Dead Fireman?
ReplyDeleteLoved your pic that you chose..Tres Chaud!!
Brilliant and enigmatic 55 Hedge
Thanks for playing, and never ever say to me again...
It's just a poem.
Anything from your pen is a treasure and Honour!!
Have a Kick Ass Week-End
Your picture and words are beautifully chilling and marvelous ~
ReplyDeleteHappy day ~
dang...sounds like the fire has gone out on the old town tonight...really the voice you write in for this just drips...
ReplyDeleteas a special treat, you really should check out bluebell books seems they are posting your work over there...just saying...
Yikes - this scared me, hedgewitch!
ReplyDeleteOh dear! This reminds me of certain people that were capable of Xing me out. Awful. (The experience not the poem!) This is a very heated x-ing for all its cool.
ReplyDeleteDon't know about bluebell but one of those related sites used an elephant painting (of mine) as a prompt once! I wouldn't have minded at all, if there'd been a credit given--crazy. (Why I can understand people wanting some anti-piracy act.) k.
IMO using your work, or anyone's without attribution *is* piracy, and wrong. I used to use a Creative Commons license, and even it insists on attribution--how hard is it to type someone's name and website? And I wouldn't have anything to do with bluebell, or any of the related sites. They have in the past spammed me here and continue to spam me personally via my email for their various prompts and functions.
DeleteGlad you enjoyed the piece, K. I loved yours, as you know. Now I have to try some martian.
Creepy image. Reminds me of something out of Creepshow. The fire and ice, Medusa'd and all, the burning bed. Lots to swallow.
ReplyDeleteYes, I decided it was too creepy and changed it to something less graphic. Thanks for reading, Yvonne.
DeleteThat's an amazing images, the words you put to it enigmatic, I think. Nicely done. :)
ReplyDeleteHot and cold / sweet and sour
ReplyDeleteregardless it is a smoldering 55
Cool piece! That first verse is great- and thanks for ending w/ ice cube!
ReplyDeleteA tight, fabulous write, HW. The last two stanzas are just pure poetry, truly. You were in a zone with this 55...the smoke is rising, indeed.
ReplyDelete(btw, a belated birthday to you, my friend. May the year be one of continued beauty ~)
Your words are so much more powerful than the image...and that image is powerful! From the perfect title to your message for the G-Man, this is nearly miraculous.
ReplyDeleteThat lloks like one amazing weather front. We don't get them like that in the UK!
ReplyDeleteActually, it's a plume of volcanic ash from a volcano erupting in the middle of a glacier in Iceland. We don't get those much here, either. ;-)
Deletehot one minute, cold the next.... BBB posted a 55 of mine and did link my name, but was surprised they didn't ask me first. I saw yours and others poems there and figured you had given permissino... I submitted a 55 - hope it was the right thing to do...
ReplyDeleteI hope everything will work out for you there Margaret. Just so its clear, she has no connection to G-man, and didn't ask him before taking all those poems and his meme and reproducing them on her site. She has since pulled them, after several people objected to having their material used to promote her book project without being asked. By submitting your poem to her her with those words she suggested, you have given her the right to publish your poem, and no compensation for you as author is mentioned. If that's what you wanted, then you're fine, but I would be careful of any hidden charges or fees that may turn up--publishing books costs money, even chapbooks.
Delete