It’s like a hot day

Unbearably hot

So hot sweat quits

So hot you shiver

And you feel the rays beat you

And you know you could die

If perhaps it were another time

Free from all that now protects us

That’s what it’s like to touch the altar

Not because you longed for it

Not because you put your finger on a need

Not because it ever occurred to you

But because a call came

That was painful, loud, clear

That was unmistakable, unavoidable

A call that would absolutely kill you

Or at the very least cripple you

If you didn’t answer

If you didn’t touch the altar

It’s like a hot day

Unbearably hot