rebuilding the empire
listen first it’s just a rat-a tap-tap
followed by
knocks & bigger knocks
maybe fist through drywall
sledgehammer hitting brick
outside it’s a cool blue day
listen man-made grunts at
zero degrees celsius
heavy breaths like dense fog
rising & falling ceaselessly
modern day destroyers
burning down rome
every other third day
if you stop & listen you can hear
raindrops pounding ashes
january two thousand twenty-one
copyright j matthew waters
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