Dome of Smoke: A Villanelle

All about the dome of smoke
Breathing shortened, vision blemished,
Waiting for the world to choke.

 From a nightmare awoke,
Kindness and love extinguished,
All about the dome of smoke.

 My heart broke,
My spirit languished,
Waiting for the world to choke.

 In such a mire none can joke,
In such darkness, to walk, we groped;
All about the dome of smoke.

 In attempts to shed this yoke,
I bucked and ran, scrapped and pulled,
Waiting for the world to choke.

 If I seem hopeless, I misspoke.
Waiting for the world to choke.

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Bernardo Villela

Bernardo Villela has published a novella The Isle of Helyr, and three short story collections, The Bloodmaster Trilogy and Teenage Death Songs, Vols. 1 & 2; and has short fiction included in stories in Coffin Bell Journal, The Dark Corner Zine, 101 Proof Horror, A Monster Told Me Bedtime Stories, Page & Spine and forthcoming in 42 Stories Anthology, Constrain 280 and Rivet. You can read more about these and various other pursuits at www.miller-villela.com.