Honor The Dead

The rain drenched woods, branches broken,

As the air grew thick and the sky cracked open.

Mist coiled tight around the crooked trees,

And thunder whispered, “follow, please.”

A child appeared where no path led,

Pale eyes like moons, words left unsaid.

It moved through rain with a knowing grace,

And never turned its hollow face.

It beckoned me through roots and stone,

To where the wind had carved a throne.

There, from its hands, it raised a heart,

It pulsed, it crawled, it came apart.

The rhythm throbbed a maggot’s hymn,

The pulse of all I’d buried within.

It showed me death in every beat,

And peace that burns, not to repeat.

I took the heart, its fire bled,

It spoke of all the tears I’d shed.

“Prepare for war,” the storm replied,

“For every time you’ve truly died.”

I raised it high, and swallowed flame,

Their voices rose, they called my name.

My eyes turned red, my breath turned stone,

And I was never more alone.

Through the storm, their faces came,

Like gods reborn through grief and flame.

Painted saints of wrath and art,

Hollow drums tore through my heart.

They walked beside me, fierce and still,

The night obeyed their boundless will.

And through the dark, their echoes spread,

I live to honor all the dead.

Reviews

[Kenneth The Poet]

Nice work here, definitely something one might read before having a drink to honor the fallen.

[Michael Sun Bear]

Milena, I cannot know to what extent the history of your region inspires and infuses your writing, and here you name international musical influences; I just know you have a unique voice. I am reading no one else who writes like you. This is another very effective, very well written piece in your unique style. I just wish I hadn’t read it right before sleep.

[Milena Grubor]

Thank you! This is my last poem on Writerscafe. It's always crashing down, so I've decided to completely switch to website All poetry. Thank you for all of your support.

[Michael Sun Bear]

Milena, I wish you luck on All Poetry. I explored that site thoroughly, along with Booksie and Hello Poetry, back when writerscafe was completely down. I do still post there as well as review the work of others, so I will probably run into you there. I prefer writerscafe for its simple elegance, but, as you pointed out, for much of the last several weeks the website was not reliable.

[Milena Grubor]

To the legends who bled their music into the world: Joey Jordison,Paul Gray, Mitch Lucker, Chester Bennington, Alexi Laiho and Ozzy Osbourne.