Random Ramblings

A Dark Dreamscape Carol

Cloaked in furs against the chill
A maiden starts her pilgrimage
Shielding candle from the wind
Vulnerable flame sputters
Flickering yet resolute
Burning defiantly in the darkness

She stops before a balsam fir
Branches laden with wax effigies
Glowing dreams, torrid passion
each gleaming among fragrant needles
Illuminating the silent timber
with a hopeful tapestry of light

Placing her offering among them
Stepping back to witness the sheen
Pilgrim exhales with reverence
Basking in luminescence
Admiring brilliant luster
From every walk of life

Colors morph from yellow to green
Flames crackle, sparks snap
Greedily, the embers grow
Blistering supporting twigs
Ivory pillars begin to crumble
Melting in the sudden heat

Tearful maiden can only witness
Unable to stop the conflagration
All consuming in its fervor
Listening to soft shrieks
As the tree keens and withers
Helpless against igneous assault

Now the shrine has vanished
Replaced by charred bark and soot
Pale ashes tumble silently
Ghosts drifting on icy breeze
Wafting over a grieving woman
Fading into the gathering shadows