she dreamt of fire

she dreamt of fire
she dreamt of the wallpaper curling, smoking, cringing
in a theater that only played disaster movies
she dreamt of a hole that burned through the wall to reveal
a warm place beyond

she dreamt of a world where the people did not fantasize about destroying all they had constructed
because they had actually constructed something nice for once
perhaps it is a machine that produces bubbles
containing miniature butterflies
perhaps these butterflies are
genetically engineered to flutter up
and whisper a compliment in your ear
that your hair looks nice today
or that their world is
richer for your presence
even when your hair
doesn't look so nice
because they love you, baby

and the people were pretty damn
satisfied with their invention
enough that they didn't even
feel the need to make more
just to stock store shelves
they just had the one and the one
did its thing
and that was that
and they all liked what they had made
because it was a thing
they had wanted
to make