literature

Waldo Canyon 2012

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MutePoetess's avatar
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Literature Text

what are you supposed to do
    when the air you're trying to breathe
        is made of ash?
   it slips down your throat and
       suffocates you while the taste
         of destruction lingers on your tongue
     and you know it'll never go away no matter
       how much water you drink
what are you supposed to do
     when suddenly the world around you
    and everything you've ever held onto
       is made of smoke?
     black and white and gray, it billows
      and wraps around your mind and smothers you
     and you'll never think clearly again
what are you supposed to do
   when the heat of the day you're living
       is made of flame?
     the red, writhing beast crests the mountain
   and reaches into your eyes and scalds them
     and your tears dry up before you can cry

                  

                   where are you supposed to run
                      when everything's on fire?
So, for those of you who don't know, I live around Denver, CO in the US and if you've seen on the news at all, we have a ton of wildfires all over the place right now. (Actually, in general, there are a ton of wildfires all over the country this year, it's ridiculous.) Anyway, where I live, I'm safe, but where my sister lives, she's currently in the path of the Waldo Canyon fire and may have to evacuate her home tonight. I was just watching the news and I know I'm lucky that I'm safe where I'm at but it just gets me a bit freaked out, knowing my sister's out there near the fire. It's not the biggest one in the state at the moment, but it is currently the number one priority fire in the country because of the fact that it is now destroying homes and a city. Something like 30,000 people have been evacuated so far. I know nothing will happen to my sister - she's packed and ready to evac if the order comes, because her area is under pre-evac notice - but it's still just scary and I wish she was home with us instead. The cause of the fire is still undetermined; a lot of the fires here have been due to lightning strikes and drought conditions but many are under investigation of having been purposely set, and some people are speculating that that's how the WC fire started.

So anywho, this poem was inspired by all this fire going on.
© 2012 - 2024 MutePoetess
Comments26
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Moundfreek's avatar
I evacuated as the flames were coming over my backyard hill. The winds changed so fast, we had little warning. My car got stuck in the race to get out. I could barely breath and the heat was stifeling, the sky blowing from the west a bright yellow. Suffice it to say, I strongly identify wih this piece