Give me a piece of heart to break,
I’ve misplaced all the pieces of mine-
They were a comfort to me;
I had something of which to complain.
And now I’m bereft of my treasure:
The hoard I counted time and again-
These coins which life threw at me,
Alms I collected on the alleys of life.

How do I go about seeking fresh pain?
It doesn’t somehow seem the same-
When you attempt a new injury
I stand aside, watching the hurt pass by;
It has no home to seek in me,
For the debris has been cleared away
I cannot reconstruct my heart-

There are spaces there, where once it pulsed,
Spaces where winds of silence blow;
And there are fires lit for sacrifice,
For rituals which have no names,
No high-priest to perform the rites,
And oblations of emotion and thought
Of self untutored save by Self-

Give me a piece of heart to break
Let me pour it into the Fire-