Icarus

There were signs, signals, and warnings

a subtle crack in the mind, an internal unwinding.

Overwhelmed, you fled outward, away, against the clouds

trying to outrun the pain, fear, quiet desperation.

In the bleak light of morning, the descent

began, unnoticed, until midday when the eyes

turned blank, and you wandered outside dressed

only in a thin white night robe, barefoot, dark hair

streaming at your sides into oncoming traffic.

As the sirens wailed, you lay, legs askew, head

tilted to the right, gazing at the sky, lifeless

a small bird, broken against the sun.