…from the collection, Hard Rime, “Wildfire,” was nominated by editor Whitney Scott of Outrider Press for a 2016 Pushcart Prize.
The wildfire started in the afternoon.
Was it August, or the end of July?
The only thing for certain was the moon
was new, and the flames so bright you and I
woke up. Spilled firelight on the floor and wall.
From bed, we watched wildfire on the ridgeline.
“Will it come this far,” I asked, my voice small.
Your eyes, unsoothing, locked tightly to mine,
reflected fire, burnt hills, black ash and night.
That afternoon, I recall what you said,
that it was August, and we’d be alright.
It’s never certain that a fire is dead
until light spills, and your eyes fill with fire,
and walls burn all the way down to desire.
Published in Embers & Flames, Outrider Press, 2015, & honorable mention poem in Tall Grass Writers Embers & Flames contest 2015.
The beautiful fire photo is from the 2016 Pioneer Fire, taken by Kari Greer.
