The whole remarkable story
is written in the coal.
In the seams of the earth,
filed and protected,
yesterday’s paradise.
We feed its texts
in the furnace of our power plants.
Warm our cities
and create cynosures
of light under the darkness
of the sky.
An immense intelligence
here,
burning the treasure
of its inheritance.
It has always been so,
life feeding itself with life,
and dreams
created from the ashes
of its fire.