Funeral
under a shade elm
I leave a small stone marking
the site of my grave
–
cut white lilies-
so casually
discarded
under a shade elm
I leave a small stone marking
the site of my grave
–
cut white lilies-
so casually
discarded
a cold night’s work done-
the creeping light of daybreak
seeps into my tomb
–
guttering torchlight-
weary of the death
that slakes my thirst
a thin scrim of frost-
muddy waters churn beneath
this fragile veneer
–
storm clouds-
reopening
old wounds
‘neath a festive sky-
cold ashes rain down upon
old lakota land
–
beneath the stars-
none of us free
unto the last
milkweed in the wind-
beside the ancient live oak
I bury our bones
–
a lonesome gong-
pale wisps of trees
fade in the mist
an old farmers sink-
her mind miles away from the
blood in the carpet
–
back garden soil-
no amount of soap
makes her feel clean
under summer stars-
in the fading moonlight she
could almost be you
–
iron skies-
across the piazza
you become the crowd
black america
locked inside the golden door
yearning to breathe free
–
hot city streets-
new seedlings break
through the concrete
vultures overhead-
circling waiting before
feasting on the dead
–
red skies-
a tempest
at our door
drowning each of us
in the blood of our comrades
within sight of shore
–
tulips blossom-
death takes no heed
upon who’s grave