Shhh, Sequoia, I'm Not Done Screaming

Pink crystal shades me from

opaque white.

Invaded by warmth,

Metallic nourishes the veins,

Floods my senses.

Blossomed in rose

Mother, you are a thing of beauty.

Father –

Is that you in the shadows?

Did I put you there?

Swallow,

more, more, more.

A downpour burns my skin,

Catches in my throat,

Clutches my voice in its vice grip.

Smoke fills my nostrils

Ash stains the forest floor,

The cigarette buds burn our lungs.

I spot another,

She chirps and cries.

Without her this cage is empty,

Green –

Only for so long.

From his lips,

Red burns to black.

Nicotine has aged you,

Ash has cast you into our

hellish nighttime prayer.

The painful cries mingle

Within the circle of Sequoia.