I am a dark topaz,
Somber and silent
and golden.
The glow
I radiate
makes the jeweller
Smile
But I am still
and clear.
I am waiting
for the awkward brushing of an arm
to scatter me to the floor,
where I may match
exactly
the luminous striations
of the wood
and, in a
blindness like my own,
a heel
gently crushes
this desperate jewel
into a thousand diamonds
and I will be
Alive, alive.


11/1991