it was taken 
away 
and they are always saying, free
you
"live as though you're playing"
and the embers 
look like embers
and the 
burning felt like something
finally, something
to devour 
I am cold and still a  coward
when the air outside is heavy
I can barely hear the noisy breaths 
that things and 
people 
take as they move
farther
away.
