Poem: Puff and Flicker

She sat in the corner of my room
Smoking a cigarette and
Draining
A glass of whiskey and
Draining
Me.

She was the kind of woman
Who let her ashes fall and she
Swept
Them under my rug but I was never
Swept
Away.

She stayed and she stepped
And the ashes dug into the
Ground
Creating a circle of black
Like a sacrifice made to what could not
Be.

I couldn’t make her leave
Even when she didn’t want to
Stay
And when I couldn’t bear to
Stay
Away.

She sang songs too loudly
And wanted applause
But all I could muster
Were halfway smirks
And halfhearted shards of
Me.

“We were happy once,”
She said then she flicked and
Fire
Fell and she kicked the
Fire
Away.

“The flame is hot and the
Light is bright,”
I muttered.
“Don’t flatter yourself
You aren’t the man you used to
Be.”

Wisps of smoke rose between
Her fingers and she
Puffed
And then coughed and then
Puffed
Away.

“The furnace you lit is
Beginning to roll
Like a lake of flames
Licking the shore
And I fear the fire will splash onto
Me.”

She looked at me with
A tone of voice that was
Silent
Like a deaf man wanting to push
Silent
Away.

“I thought you were speaking of
Love but now I see
I am being engulfed
Because I misunderstood.
You should probably leave me
Be.”

I watched as she sat in the corner
Smoking like a cigarette and
Draining
Drops of whiskey to stop the fire, her life
Draining
Away.

When I knew she was gone
The echoes of my heartbeat
Revived
And vibrated against the walls and
Revived
Me.

© Jill Szoo Wilson

Author: Jill Szoo Wilson

I am captivated by beauty, questions that dig to the center of things, and people who tell the truth about the human experience. View all posts by Jill Szoo Wilson