A wretched desire splinters my heart, longing to return home,
To rolling fields laced with poppies, to flaxen petals frolicking
On a late September gale, to dewdrops entangled with childhood
Innocence, licking the soles of my calloused feet as I gaze toward
A dusty horizon smudged with lilac and strands of fading auburn,
But I cannot indulge my yearning, for home no longer exists
Except in the hallowed oasis of my mind.