The Restless Poet

Loose teeth rattle
beneath sunken cheeks,
swallowed whole and plunged
into the acid-gut darkness
of shame.

A mirage of purple hues
springs to the surface,
spongy, muted—tender
traces of bone to flesh.

Punch-blurred and reeling
in the impetus storms of ire,
blackened clouds hovering, humming…
dangling fragile peace
in the hollow depths.

Lid-stirring fireballs
explode beneath a torrid
downpour of sulfuric ash,
awakening the fear
in the breath of a corpse.