It’s not that way with all things. Some that go are gone.
—A.R. Ammons, “Eyesight”
And so it is that
even after the candle flame
is gone, yes, after
the flame is gone,
the carbon and unburned
wax vapor in the smoke
will still combust when touched
by a match, will travel down
the smoke and reignite
the wick. It sounds
like magic—looks like it,
too, a small ball of flame
dropping bright through the air.
So tonight when
my friend sends me
a video of just such
a marvel, I play it
again and again.
And all the burned out
wicks in me stand up
just a little bit straighter
and I stare at them
to notice if there is
still any smoke, and
my god, if I don’t just
run to the drawer
and find me
a box of matches,
their sticks brittle,
their tips as red
as hope.
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