The Nature of Living

The nature of living after the flood is
one of decay. The walls shuddering / the
damp creeping in / a cough settling deep
in your lungs. So much for purification.
So much for absolution. Everything is
born-again & already rotting.

The nature of living after the fire is
eyes red & burning. No voices / no
words / no speaking. Our throats too
heavy with the weight of the smoke
we swallowed to survive

The nature of living after the end is
an endless wandering / a body searching /
a body turning wasteland. The lines that
shouldn’t be crossed have been carelessly
abandoned / pale scars across the earth /
& no one watches where they step anymore.

Madeleine Christie

Biography:

Madeleine Christie goes by Maddie except when writing poetry. An 18-year-old currently living in New Zealand & studying classics and linguistics, she has a love for language & a desire to see the world. She buys far too many poetry books for someone on a student budget & is fascinated by mythos, the cosmos & the nature of humanity. More of her work can be found at vespairs.tumblr.com