Better sorry than safe

You come home with pictures
of everything but yourself.

There are many ways to be a person,
and this is indeed one of them,
when you are so full of kindling
that you cannot risk a match.
Would you burn what you have built?
Each board cut by hand,
sanded clean, pressure-treated—

Except: the spare planks beg for the bonfire.
Every flame a tongue,
every blaze a congregation,
smoke and fury,
heat and sound,
spark and sweat.

How long is immortality?
How hot is immolation?
In time, your forests will burn,
and you with them,
longing and belonging,
in spite of your choosing,
or in lieu of it,
or in light of it.

Started January 26, 2025
Finished June 2, 2025, on a plane to start a vacation