Fever

The heat enslaves me,
Chilling me to the bone,
Ringing between my ears
While wrapping its hand
Tightly around my throat
Pressing upon my shoulders
With this all-encompassing ache
 
I relinquish my heart into your hand
That it might be sheltered
From the burning pyre of my flesh,
And I succumb to the flames
While lying prone across my bed,
A human sacrifice to Pele,
Thrown into the volcano
In a dizzying plummet
 
Eventually I will emerge 
From the flames, a phoenix, 
Released from the furnace,
But for now
I sleep

 
 

february 2011
Janet Reid