Thawing out from a Frozen Friday the 13th

After a frigid Friday complete with frozen fingers and toes, I've finally thawed out enough to type!  Thank you to those of you who tuned in to World Poetry Open Mic last night.  If you missed it, check out the archives on their website.  You'll find two poems of mine on last night's program.

After participating in the show and listening to a lovely poem by the very talented Cynthia Sharp, I was inspired to write about a beautiful place I love.  The poem emerged much differently than I expected; it's rather somber, but I still think it conveys the beauty of the location.  It sounds more like tragic beauty, though.  See for yourself.

“The Pit”

the expanse of stars above

crushes the chest

breath flees

and refuses to return

must be coaxed back

haltingly

wary of the grandeur

caught up by the shimmering

sparkling sky

hanging

above the shell of rock

sharp and broken underfoot

slabs shift and slide

skittering down the slope

the clatter echoes

reverberating around the bowl

sipped up by the far tree line

and gobbled by the near

fire dances in the basin

growing and glowing

flitting up high

and diving down low

tongues wagging mightily

but only a crackle

and occasional pop

is heard

smoke slides through the air

cresting over the cusp

and settling in the hollow

permeating skin, follicle, and fabric

interweaving itself

with all involved

hitching a ride

to be inhaled at a later time

and coughed out bitterly