Its wide expanse pours forth from chipped white –
the jaws of consciousness,
demanding sacrifice;
of self
of love.
Stepping forward, I offer myself up,
knowing no other way,
before the open waves
that strip me bare.
The lid of my mind pried open,
words burn across my eyes,
a flood carrying away joy,
prisoner of this destruction.
And what remains;
my skin ripped and torn,
at the ankles of my arms,
penance for crimes
I have not committed.
I stare and am reduced
Entropy.
The swell of the waves rises higher,
licking my heels, climbing
my frame.
I am borne away,
a lifeless vessel
Inhibited.
I dip beneath the dark mass:
their tendrils close, cradling my scalp,
nurturing a piercing blackness,
of sacrificial ritual,
the everlasting heartbeat
echoing softly in my ear:
Sacrifice self,
sacrifice love.
–
But, for all this, all I am left with is cold coffee and a sense of doubt.