someday soon i am going to catch on fire
not through any action of my own
not by smoking in bed
i’m too cheap to buy cigarettes
not by standing too close to an open flame
while wearing non-flame-retardant pajamas
not by standing beneath a giant magnifying glass
on a sunny day like some ant cooked by a bully
not even from some smoldering look you
carelessly toss my way
though that would be my preferred method
i think spontaneous combustion is nature’s way
of cleaning up its weeds
turning us into carbon-rich ash for a new
generation of green things without nettles
so i tell myself i won’t mind so much
when i finally smell the smoke
Words and Feathers 
I spontaneously combusted once. It was hot.
not even from some smoldering look you
carelessly toss my way
thought that would be my preferred method
FABULOUS!
Thank you!
You’re not a weed! Great poem though.
Thank you!
…and will you rise phoenix-like? (K)
Always.
Can we call you Firebird when that happens? 😉 Excellent poem. Serious and yet not without hunour, tense but loose. Right on the edge of things. Great poem.
Thank you very much. I actually owned a Firebird when I was younger. Man, what a car!