Oh fire, thou art destructive to thy core;
An elemental force reducing all
To elements original. Before
Thy blazing path must all who touch thee fall.
And yet thy flames do carry me and stir
A hope for dawn, a comfort for tonight,
Engulfed in spreading heat from head to toe.
Thou rest content behind thy grate, good sir;
A mighty force contained to shed thy light,
And grant thy gentle warmth as friend, not foe.
postscript
For day six of A Horatian Ode. I chose good ol' iambic pentameter. An ode to glorious warmth, in the midst of a midwest winter. Ugh.