The Poetry of Mark Daniel Milbocker 
Awakening as a Dragon Hatchling

Eye opens to the glisten of last yolk
tooth pecking for an influx of air
a spine not yet hardened stretches 
against the luminascent concavity 
falling away like a porcelain veil
that held the naked chill at bay

Heart shimmers with ruby opal fire
winks open to the vast world dance
and the unfamiliarly scaffolded spire
of a dazzling post-basaltic expanse 

Maw glows with anticipation
hungry for an ingest of brawn
or a morsel of amoral questitude
giving way to an omnivorous palate
rising like a late morning phoenix 
whose throat embers with the thrill of slay
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©2026 Mark Daniel Milbocker  All rights reserved.