No pair of ragged jagged claws

No scuttling across the ocean’s floor

But this

A handful of brilliant stars

Flung against the dark expanse

Only for one moment

But that moment forces to no crisis

A brief nothing yet everything

Glittering web of emptiness

Oh there will be time, there is no time

No decisions no revisions

This breath that pauses the sole measure

It is now it is now it is now

So dare to ask any question

The universe is not disturbed

I walked with the night’s darkness

Draped on my shoulders.

It hung with ragged edges

And glimmers of stars.

I chewed on their bitter words,

Spitting out the husks of judgement

And swallowing the knowledge

Of my own harsh disdain.

Such a winding trail I followed,

Marked by obscured delineation and forgotten counsel

Lured by whispers of elegiac chorus.

With each step I crushed the bones underfoot

And they laughed as they fragmented

Into the minutiae of lives past, present, and future.

So familiar, for they were mine.

Building bridges is all well and good.

But now I stand on my carefully constructed arch.

I’ve posted signs with arrows:

This way! Cross the river here!

And I wait. Day turns to night turns back to day.

No travelers approach; no farmers with laden carts;

Not even a wandering dog.

My bridge becomes a meaningless edifice,

Born of futile hopes for utility and community aid.

I spent a considerable portion of life’s time and energy

To its design, placement, and function.

Sadly I arise, glance backwards once, and depart.

Perhaps someday someone will find it of use.