Afterglow
…
ember is the last chance for the fire
to prove itself, a last resort
…
like I resort to trusting the distance
of stars more than I trust this moon
…
ember is the fire’s last hope, smoldering
through the only remaining log, so slowly
…
so beautifully, like the fireflies that used to
crystal here
….
ember is the fire’s final prayer for one
last gust of a forgiving wind
….
I don’t know how to forgive myself
for letting you smother me
..
ember is the last ounce of protection before
the wolves close in
….
I am closing
in
…
as the smoke cuts through
and negotiates for the flame
….
This poem is from the book I Spend So Long Evaporating by Rebecca Kositzke (Finishing Line Press) and can be found at https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/i-spend-so-long-evaporating-by-rebecca-kositzke/
I Spend So Long Evaporating is a collection of poetry that takes the reader inside the world of vision loss. It makes parallels that compare losing vision to fire, to water, and fireflies. These poems take the reader through different types of poetry, such as free verse, lyrical, and prose. It is sectioned into four parts that move in time, through the night. These sections also move from a place of denial to acceptance. It is a short collection of poems that allows the reader to see for themselves how difficult it can be to lose something as important as vision.
Rebecca Kositzke lives in Lansing Michigan. She received an MFA in Creative Writing, specializing in Poetry, at New England College in Henniker, New Hampshire. She wrote book reviews for The NewEnglander. She was Editor in Chief and wrote nonfiction pieces in The Henniker Review. Her first children’s book Blaze of Glory was published in 2018 with Page Publishing. She has been writing stories since she was a child. When she’s not writing stories, she’s reading books, camping, or spending time with her family and her cat.
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