Ember Across the Cosmos ~ Joseph Idell-Whitt

Turn me into a clump of ash;

let my withering soul be pulverized

in your sharp embrace as it clangs and clashes.

Grind it to a powder so fine that dust is jealous;

then spread it through this world of mine.

 

Let every morsel experience a different reality

in the second it has, flowing freely,

before the ground steals its life.

Open my eyes, show me all that there is to be,

revealing everything through this galaxy.

 

Let my fragments soar to distant realms,

experiencing all that it has to offer,

so when my time comes, I find peace in knowing

I have done it all.

 

There is not an experience I do not know,

no life I have not lived.

There are no regrets for things I have not done,

for I have done everything there is to do.

 

Unbind me from this fear that controls my every step

by showing me the world’s ecstasy and misery.

Don’t hide one or the other;

let me experience both—one after the other,

or at the same time. Whichever comes first,

I do not care; I can handle it.

 

Give me the opportunity to be drawn in by the allure of each space;

allow me to be awestruck by the brilliance built in each place.

Whether or not I am taken by grief,

show me what’s truly meant to be in each part of these galaxies.

 

If I am to die, let there be fireworks.

Have the glitter from my soul sow weeds of new beginnings.

 

No sad songs shall play; instead, let it be an orchestra, one

that lets stars be their instructor.

For this music, I will follow

as I ascend to what’s beyond this veil of hollow.

 

Let my shameless self rest in all’s embrace,

obliterating the past and stepping into a glimmering future.

For we do not get to choose to be born;

our life sparks with our first breath.