Canary in a Coal Mine
She awakens to a jostle of her cage
Her small heart pounds against her ribs
It is dark but for a few rays of light, even so she cannot see
Everything is black, everything is dark
Breathing around you is to inhale dirt, dust, smoke, yellow gas
She cannot breathe even to plead for her life
The caged bird sings out of fear; pure horror
But, oh, what a lovely sound
Her body is used, discarded, without so much as a burial
Tiny soft body among the black dust and her unfortunate sisters
Sunlight put out; the world is still night