"SLASH AND BURN" by Len Harrison

Photo by Analia Baggiano on Unsplash

i want to call you out like a cold winter breeze full of ice and snow / but july cocoons

itself around you / flame and flame and smoke and mirrors / a wall i could never get

through /

you’re protected / a queen in her castle, stone walls stretching tall /

i want to cross the moat climb the towers / throw a grenade into the depths of your heart and see if it burns / or not / see if your arteries are twisting green vines / or rather steel and brick / perhaps even flimsy, flimsy mica / molecular formations you’ve learned to control /

is all you are a fire extinguisher? am i all of a sudden the flamethrower? /

tell me, old friend, / what matters more to you / the winter snow or the summer shadows

/ what matters more to me / are we the clouds passing or something so much

more insignificant? /

i thought forest fires were supposed to feed on breath / and trees are ripe and sweet on

the tongues of flames / but now i question / if the fire regrets its actions after / or if the

smoke screams into the open ocean / how it’s furious it went so far and can’t go farther /

and if the fire takes out all of the dead branches / how much of the living does it kill?

Now a sophomore at the Waynflete School in Portland, Maine, Len Harrison has enjoyed writing poetry since the second grade. In addition to writing poetry, Len has also been a member of The Telling Room's Publishing Workshop for three semesters and hopes to continue in this role. When not writing, Len can be found working backstage at the Franklin Theater, listening to science fiction podcasts, or learning languages.