Tangerine and Baby Blue

Published in the literary journal 'Apeiron Review'

It was a vast expanse of solemn trees,

immaculately arranged, splattered with shades

of gorgeous hues- ocher, teal and baby blue,

but the ambience was dry, arid, parched,

the rustle of leaves was only to be heard

as travelers paved their path through the woods

lighting a fire, more than an incandescent spark

fighting its way to be distinguished in the dark

A while later, torrential ashes swirled,

blending against the setting of black,

as particles of fire, glittering, surreal,

plummeted towards the Earth, illuminating all it touched

The world was enveloped by that acrid scent,

the world was set alight by tangerine sparkles,

the inky sky shielded by billowing gray smoke,

which spread out like a billowing charcoal cloak

The trees, unable to withstand the boiling wrath

that emanated from its merciless, whipping flames,

exposed to the lustrous, glowing light

and the scorching heat that warmed the night

Its rage fortified, with its sweltering blaze,

and the crimson flares that ruthlessly beat down

The surroundings were vague, hazy, pervaded with loss

of the vast expanse of majestic trees,

immaculately arranged, splattered with shades

of gorgeous hues- ocher, teal and baby blue

Once the fire ceased, which took many days

the green was gone, to be replaced by glistening embers

that shone faintly, as though craving the warmth

of the whirling fumes and quivering flames

Yet, for an observant, passive onlooker,

the sight would have been dazzling, hypnotic,

of the radiant fire that consumed the woods

 radiating transitory beauty and transient warmth

only to be extinguished by water or time,

can we appreciate the effects it has,

on modest hues of ocher, teal and baby blue