after the end*

the words form
before a period
at a precipice
the letters tumble
off screen
and evaporate
from memory
wave after wave
the world washes away
into the cache

what comes after

dim your headlights
sun down sky
the clouds are on fire
and autumn amber
rains down
with broken backs
still and cooling
in afterglow
the stars sink
into the sea

what comes after

skip a beat
a false start
a heart stutters
on a bed of diamonds
and falls flat
in the corner
of your eye
crystals form
a line
and the pain fades
into time

what comes after

after the end

.




* Liquids, Gases and Solids by Edward Ruscha. This poem is dedicated to Harold Camping.