FIRE AND ICE

It began as a whisper, a promise

The calmest of voices whispered my dreams into my ears

And like a child on Christmas eve, I hearkened to it

I believed you

You began to linger slowly through the decay of time

Like a vine snake in a meadow, you slithered

Each day bringing you closer to your sinister plan

And with each passing day, the change became apparent

Frailness overtook me, threatening to shatter the very core of my existence

Like a virus, you spread through me faster than wild fire

You infected me with your poison

I was helpless

I was sick, sick for you, and you were my only cure

You always provided a healthy dose of the antidote

But just like an ice storm in a cold November, you ceased…eventually

I was out in the cold, fragile and weak, I was left for dead

Minutes turned to hours, hours turned to days

I froze

I couldn’t scream, I had lost my voice in the cold

Even if I did, no one would hear me out in the wilderness

When all hope seemed lost, a ray of sunlight finally hit my forehead

But this was not the end

I lost track of time, still engrossed in weakness and agony

I burned

As I watched my hope turn into a raging nightmare, I cried

As my flesh was charred, I groaned, but no one came

With the last strength in me, I picked myself up and began to walk

I walked

When all attempts seemed to be failing, I found new strength

So I began to run

I ran

I smiled as I saw the beacon of hope restored

My skin thawed, but my heart ever crystalline remained

It had frozen so cold, matchless by the ice bergs of the Atlantic

My body did only what it knew how to do best, self-preservation

It purged the disease from my system and formed antibodies against it

And so, when that promise comes whispering again

When that voice comes bearing my dreams again

I’ll know better than to let it in

All I have to look down at my scars and frozen heart

And I’ll remember.

Written by Max