Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE NATURAL FIRE, by CLIFFORD ALLEN


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE NATURAL FIRE, by                    
First Line: This is no hearth-kept blaze. If only
Last Line: The searched and seaching protoflame!
Subject(s): Fire


This is no hearth-kept blaze. If only
the heart will hold it, maybe I
can carry a brand to the ever lonely
hearth to welcome a passerby
or a neighbor -- anyone at all! --
but who is drawn to a daemon's call?

This is no steady flame. To glimmer
a while, to catch on resin and flare,
to crackle at hindrances, grow dimmer
with night and dampness, wildly glare,
blind some and roar at others -- these
are tricks of fire betrayed to the breeze.

This is pursuing fire. Its fuming
hostility melts the will like snow;
compelled, I watch the wild consuming
and tremble: Strangely, now I know
this is a fire that none will tame --
the searched and seaching protoflame!





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