everything is ashes in my mouth
they taste like graveyard dirt
rife with greasy sins
of the dead
and those waiting to be reborn
eager to work off karmic burdens
the universe will not last
as long as their labors
long ponderous chains
manacle my hands and
hobble my ankles
i smell the smoke of regret
and envy
and it is my own flesh
that burns
filling my nostrils
Words and Feathers 
Just the right amount of optimism appears here in the form of inevitable rebirth.
Optimism? Where’s my delete key?
Just kidding. Thanks so much for finding a tiny light in the darkness.
Grim if you don’t believe in reincarnation – but a good metaphor, nevertheless