Keeping the Dark at Bay

No light switches to grey the ebony black

Till the night beyond the windows begins to grey

And the sun creates a delicate pink

Against the blue howl of the wind

Left behind by the lightless dark.

My world reduced to circles of yellow cast by candles

Begins to expand beyond my lantern

But not to the global proportions of the internet.

The cat traverses between flickering flames

How does his tail not catch fire?

He toys with his fresh caught mouse

while I boil my eggs upon the wood stove

My internal clock trying to guess the time

While avoiding the question of how much longer with no power

Will the water, wood, candles and batteries last.

Will the sun break through the now clouds

Its light war the studio interior

Only shades of Whistler grey are promised

I dare the windows to assure myself the winds have not

blown the world away in the night.

J. Binford-Bell

December 16, 2016