Passions Flames

I could smell the smoke and see it rising from the flames
As you described your broken heart
Colors, incandescent, alive and furious reached ever higher
He had hurt you
I have always loved fires of any kind
And I lose myself to the flames
He made you cry with indiscretions and lies
I could see the pain in your eyes.
Gusts of early September wind
Carried the fire’s heat to me on a blanket of cool air
It was a strange sensation,
Feeling the coolness of the wind and the warmth of the fire at once
He loved you, but betrayed you, and was cruel
I was sympathetic
Because I do not like cruelty or injustice
The tree above us, above the fire
Had far reaching branches.
I don’t know what kind of tree it was
But I think it was enjoying the fire’s warmth with me
There is a right and a wrong in this world, you said
The last few sticks I added, along with the logs already burning
Had created tremendous flames
But the sticks were dry and old
And were burning quickly
Why do we allow ourselves to love so fully
And to be hurt so deeply?
Still, you said
You would not give up on love
The fire was dying now, having been absorbed by the darkness
By the tree, and by me
The night was growing cold, but the embers still glowed
And a thin trail of smoke drifted into the stars.
“I understand” I finally said,
“Let me hold you. I believe in love too.”
And I do