Reflections on a Flame

Small and focused,
Still and tall;
Dispels the darkness
Without a sound.

Steady and unfaltering--
This seed of flame,
Waiting patiently,
Invites you to a sense
Of comfort
And peace.

But.

In a heartbeat
This seed erupts into a fountain of fire,
Full and bright and beautiful;
Fierce and flowing;
Dangerous.

In a breath,
The fountain becomes a phoenix,
Consuming everything in its path;
Everywhere and nowhere all at once at once.
It is wild and powerful and untamable.

And then, it seems,
It is nothing.
It is smoke.
Imperceptible, except for our memory of it.
Of its heat
Its brightness
Its power.

Where do we see God
But in the life of a flame?