Lines

Leathers

I can see my shadow in the darkest of nights

I'm not like you or the others

You see, a great light's inside of me

Sometimes I can see it under my fingernails

Or if I open my mouth as wide as can be

Some days it's so bright that I see my own silhouette in my room at night

But there are days where it dims too and I forget it's there

Yet it never dims forever

I didn't realize it was unique at first

Most of my early childhood I didn't even notice it, or if I did I explained it away

Night light

Hall light

I never was totally shrouded in dark anyway

When I saw it emanating from me, I was scared

I asked my mom, she said there was nothing there

A friend stayed over and I looked for his light too

I saw nothing, I asked him if he saw mine

I clearly did, I could see him enough to see if he held out two fingers

But he couldn't see the same for me

The more I questioned, the more confused he became

And after a few days of him coming over, I realized the truth

That I was alone

It made me feel strange

Other

But then I felt strong, I had light I could use

When no one else could even see it

I'd never truly be alone on the bright days

Stories of superheroes and mythologies played out

Call me Lightbringer, see my trail

Call me Brightbearer, with light to share

As I grow older, the dim days stay longer

Sometimes I wonder if the bright spot will return

A relief so palpable upon seeing my shadow again

In the dead of night

Strangely too, there are days where it gets brighter than ever

It's rare, but it once became so bright that closing my eyes felt more like containing it

I could see the pink hue of my eyelids, as if a flashlight was held just in front

If my mouth was open, I could see my array of teeth blocking the light too

My tongue drawing shapes in the shadows

It never was this bright before, it made me feel stronger than ever

And then the dim returns, and I'm left feeling normal

Which after exception feels like betrayal

Or withdrawal

At work I sliced open my forearm, caught myself good against a microplane

The leathers of this coil are so much more mundane

When you have a god inside

I thought nothing more of it until I saw a bizarre keyhole illuminated against my bandages

Like a puzzle piece, it revealed itself to me

At night, it was like I was holding up a flashlight to the side

I pulled away the bandages, and it became so bright

I was concerned the neighbors would see

Then it dawned on me; my fleshly tapestry was stopping it

With this new revelation I knew what I had to do

And I pity the world in a sense

They are losing their hero, no more shall Brightbearer blaze new trails

But I had to contain it no longer

The light inside of me must sing, and my skin was its cage

So I started to rip away the bindings of leather keeping me whole

Keeping the light inside

Chunks of flesh fell away

At first it stung like magma pouring over the wound

But then it became numb as I saw the light shooting out like a beacon

So much it enveloped me

I started to lose myself to it, I could no longer close my eyes, the light was too bright

More and more of the folds pulled away

More and more of the cage was unlocked

Until at last it was all done, and the light was free

And for a moment, for one brief moment

The world saw me

Everyone saw the beacon of light

Lightbringer had brought his bounty

Brightbearer had saved the day

It felt of another Sun that created a new dawn across the globe

So strong was my light that it shot down the horizon and all the way 'round

And for the first time

In my bright, bizarre life

I smiled

I smiled so wide

I never knew a smile could feel so good and so right

And then in a heap I collapsed

And my light went out forever