Without Fire
In the absence of fire,
There is nothing. The very
Society crafted has fallen
Flat without the flames.
Water may signify the turning
Tides of change but without
Fire, there is no spark that
Moves hearts to get us this far.
Stars, the pretty sights in the
Mysterious skies we hold high,
Are ultimately the fiery balls of
Light that help us reside in
Temporary sanctuary in this life.
As I was young, I was told
Black people come from the sun.
So I see fire when I look at us.
Because without us, the
Country of America sadly
Becomes a boring one.
There is nothing. The very
Society crafted has fallen
Flat without the flames.
Water may signify the turning
Tides of change but without
Fire, there is no spark that
Moves hearts to get us this far.
Stars, the pretty sights in the
Mysterious skies we hold high,
Are ultimately the fiery balls of
Light that help us reside in
Temporary sanctuary in this life.
As I was young, I was told
Black people come from the sun.
So I see fire when I look at us.
Because without us, the
Country of America sadly
Becomes a boring one.
Where There's Smoke
The smell is apparent.
It’s hard to miss.
Intoxicatingly pungent to the
Point it burns when it
Fills your lungs with sooty dust.
Spreading and engulfing
All that’s in its path.
It’s not red wrath but it’s
Labeled as a Black Plague the
Way it slays in its wake.
I call it fate.
Using oxygen for fuel,
Building upon missing fossils
Some call it cruel.
But it’s culture.
The smoke comes from fire
And we all smell it
But who lit the match?
We’ll let the fire tell the tale.
It’s hard to miss.
Intoxicatingly pungent to the
Point it burns when it
Fills your lungs with sooty dust.
Spreading and engulfing
All that’s in its path.
It’s not red wrath but it’s
Labeled as a Black Plague the
Way it slays in its wake.
I call it fate.
Using oxygen for fuel,
Building upon missing fossils
Some call it cruel.
But it’s culture.
The smoke comes from fire
And we all smell it
But who lit the match?
We’ll let the fire tell the tale.
Tyler Auston Jones is a poet/writer based in Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from Western Carolina University with a bachelors in English and minor in Creative Writing. He currently works as a preschool teacher and music journalist. He’s finishing his first poetry compilation, Obsidian Sun. He’s inspired by music, his blackness, and the reflections he’s had with the world at large.