Not a Word

We once found the coals

Chained and gagged beneath the soil

Shackled to the earth.

Freed a firelight,

Crawling and teething beneath,

Chewing at the coals.

We all watched the smoke

Contort ‘round Gaia’s throat, yet

She said not a word.

We saw it creeping,

Seeping in the welkin lungs -

God said not a word.

We saw it in the mirror -

Saw the cracks run like rivers,

Saw a world of dust,

Endless nights of broken glass - 

We said not a word.