Empire

It is these moments
That make this terminal life worth its aches and joys
Together in your flat
Candles lit
We laugh and eat and reminisce
Our collective Joy lifts the roof
A hot air balloon bursting forth
It flies through the ceiling and over the city
Its colours bright as a circus tent
In this gathering
People
Who have laughed and cried with me
Whose lives knit to my own
Make sense out of my existence
People
Who make up the community in my heart
Whose walls surround me
Whose love absorbs me
Whose Joy implores me
Together in this room
We celebrate a passing year
And drink to Gods and Goddesses long since gone
The candles burn down to their wicks
Too much wine and song
And scanning the room my heart a warm beating pomegranate torn apart
Is filled with love and warmth and light
For a moment, brief spell of time
The world and you
Are one
All is as it should be
The dance goes on