The world is on fire and someone keeps taking all the buckets.
These invisible fires are burning the bridges of the world, 
Creating distance and loneliness. 
We only see the burns it causes and bodies it leaves
Behind -- fingers that died pointing at a neighbor
Turned monster by the smoke. 

Lungs under attack,
Drowning in bacteria, brutality, and broken systems.
We inhale the ashes of the furious,
And chew on the revenge of our reflections. 
Who taught you to swim in heavy, boiling water?

And the fire continues, 
Consuming our oxygen and
Swallowing our strength -- 
A delicate and destructive scene perfected by
Centuries of practice.

But this isn't over. 
Fire reveals the faults we need to heal,
The spaces of human connection 
We can fill with questions and empathy, 
Phrases like: I don't know, 
Attached with an openness and 
A warmth that doesn't burn.