Burnt In

Not bleak, not dyed, not tint,
Liquid made by burning,
Imperial, caustic,

Signed under penalty
Of death, this inky cloak.
And what does it mean now?

It indicates nothing
Anymore, neither mark
Nor stain. Indication

Has been given over
To other contrasts, lights,
Electricity, screens.

Still, the idea of it,
Like all ideas, requires
Some kind of metaphor,

Some effortful meaning
At the edge of the woods
After fire, trees in ink.