To all who sit by the fireplace and ponder

A serpent’s tongue
Between the logs
Flickering
Then pulling back
Hiding inside a cozy nook
Blazing back
To brilliant life
Roaring, crackling
It warms the heart
For a blink in time
Then hides again
Among the embers
It glows and cracks
Until the end
Its light deceased
The fireplace sleeps
For one more night