I sometimes wonder if the fire is kin to what I am within

Is skin to what I am within – when darkness lures

A hiss of icy night and eyes too tired to find delight

The swishing of the white tail, paws on icy grass

⦿

The tiny crunch – dark whisper, pulls me there

The velvet black surrounds – foolish!

My skin protests the frozen kiss

With breathing centred in the crackling heartfire’s hiss

⦿

I cling, my life this warmth… I, Eye – against

The icy tip of calling blade that taunts from glittering sky

Its hand so far away, yet present like a god; not yet!

His thin-lipped smile, my heart a stream of icy, chanted breath

⦿

The distant eyes so bright in deepest black

Perhaps… not yet? they feint with deeper cold

I parry – breathing in, retreating – and blood-red heat renews me

The icy point withdraws to star. She-dog finds the closing door

⦿

Frozen out-there glitters on…

Behind us, warm and crackling, the embers of the last log linger

Within reflecting glass we salute implacable fire

And, turning, copy both their smiles.

I sometimes wonder if the fire is kin to what I am within

©Stephen Tanham 2020

Stephen Tanham is a Director of the Silent Eye School of Consciousness, a not-for-profit teaching school of modern mysticism that helps people find a personal path to a deeper place within their internal and external lives.

The Silent Eye provides home-based, practical courses which are low-cost and personally supervised. The course materials and corresponding supervision are provided month by month without further commitment.

Steve’s personal blog, Sun in Gemini, is at stevetanham.wordpress.com.