another day
in the sixth mass extinction
sitting in the background
in a heavy mid summer heat
the house finches
at the feeder
peck at plastic
because I’ve forgotten
to fill it up
and the backyard grass is blonde
but the weeds are flowering
some of them are a few feet tall
I let them stand
at least something is thriving still
the air smells like fire
you can tell how bad it really is
come sunset
the more stunning it is
the more our lungs hurt
the more forest has burned
somewhere something is aflame
that’s a constant guarantee
but over the mountains
the clouds like flames
like spilling pastel
like something divine
that shape of which
I can’t quite make out
but the power of it I can feel
it even stains the light
the light here is stained
so is the dirt
so is almost everything
sometimes I wonder
how far I’d have to go
to find nothing human
though there’s maybe
nowhere left
so I guess I’ll relish in the red
and the pink and the yellow
as things burn
and are beautiful
and I’ll make sure to feed
the house finches
because they do me a service
by reminding me
there are other things
somehow still alive
while above us
through the smoke and smog
the stars blink
as they have
through all the other ends
and new beginnings of the world

Alexander Shalom Joseph is an award-winning poet, writer and playwright from Gilpin County, and is the author of seven published books. You can find his work and more information about him at alexandershalomjoseph.com.