Why speak first in the midst of chaos

2025-01-01

To prove that my breath is reality

A private voice whispers

then burns

in wasted sacrifice

A voice in protest

now ash in a tray

The lack of this voice now

bleeds inside me

until it bursts

into a voice too late

too weak

This is a familiar view.

A nation writhes

from internal bleeding

bombs burst to nurse it.

I hold it at a distance.

Disown it like an expired match.

Why speak first in the midst of chaos?

To be ubiquitous

To never burn away

originally published in Indelible Literary and Arts Journal, 2025