The first collapse of soundless
Day, the first after your breath
Ever knew. Lightning incarnate
And innocent, you learned
The smell of forlorn rain. Panic
Climbed each rung of rib when
Your teeth felt thunder promise
Warfare along your spine. Boarded
Your eyes against the tail light
Interstate, threw an unzipped
Suitcase into your open story.
Watched the clouds roll in, in, in.
So, you slept under an unknown
Haze God promised you one
Lifetime ago. Tell me, did he
Tell you about the silence
Of aftermath? The birds left
Before the wind came like
Sin through the coast, before
The Eye fixed on wings. You
Found shelter from the worst.
But what do you do with the quiet--
With all the broken glass? Will
You ever find a voice in debris,
Or sea foam? Please understand
That after the storm, lightning
will always love the place
you call home.
