They say the Marseillaise was

a blood song

that ran cold over time

as the French became desensitized

to the work of the revolution

the distance in time

allowing for a certain forgetfulness

a human contrivance, oui,

bestowing a feeling

that we are better than we were.

Our history shares

the dementia

of forgetting the fire of the forge

until at times

a spark is rendered

blood is heated

and all become touched by the flames.

–Danny Grosso