flight 101

light sources

mothering a fire

he

brought

two stones

together

for something good

something that changed

the world

they said

i have my

reservations

though

i think

it was a she

something so intense

not the work of

a man

the day fire

was born

no not because

a man can't strike

two stones together

i think he can

and pretty well too

it is the patience

that it takes

that made me

think this through

you cannot force a birth

for a life to come

into this

land

and

breathe

it must

take its own time

like a child conceived

who starts to breathe

the fire too

must have taken its

time

to inhale

the oxygen around

and while it did

it would have needed

tender hands

caring hands

to form a circle of care

protecting it

from the harsh winds

that blew

she must have

spoken to it

softly

coaxed it

as its silent crackling

grew

and when it did

she must have

nursed it

as an infant new

yes

this part

i agree with

that the flaming

orange child

changed the world

for good

a world that

taciturnly revolved

and sometimes stood

all i add

is

it

needed

a mother too