The Box Poem by Amber Piercy

Prompt: Inside this mahogany box.

The Box

Carved out of exquisite detail
A simply crafted design
Carefully made with each nail
It's definitely one of a kind

Embossed with delicate ivory
Stained by the purest oil
An honest to God discovery
That causes your blood to boil

Each edge made out of pride
Cut from the strongest mahogany
What may lie inside
Depends on you and me

The carved wood holds so much love
As you graze the lid with your hand
Like a gift from above
You begin to understand

This is where your dreams go
When they have no where else to run
This is where the roses grow
When there is no more sun

This is where time slowly moves
Like raindrops down a steel roof
The liquid slides down each groove
A pitter patter of honest proof

This is how clocks are made
When there's no more time
Like all the plans that were laid
At the beginning of each rhyme

This box contains forces that are beyond us all
Forces that we can't comprehend
Like reaching the bottom of a long fall
Or hopping across the rivers bend

Each moment etched upon its wood
For tired eyes to see
All to be labeled as holy and good
Brought here for you and me

If you want to open this box
Please use a wise hand
To open up all the locks
And pour out the golden sand

You will understand the meaning of life
And all its splendid glory
Because even the sharpest of knives
Can become dull and boring

So with time you too can grow
Like the roses in the field
And all through the valley below
Use them like a shield

To finally understand the truth
Is to understand life itself
To finally have all the proof
Is to restore your own health

A.D. Small
March 16,2022