The scaffold steps
creaked and groaned
with the falling of each foot
a gentle wave of excitement
whispered through the crowd;
an undulating noise.
Turning, looking out over them,
the sharp cry of insult
came cutting through.
The trap door marked the place
marked his perch at the edge of eternity.
With his condemnation read aloud
to justify the injustice of it all,
then the blessing of God's emissary
to guide him as he falls into oblivion.
Darkness - the donning of the hood,
that last glimpse of life and light.
Fitted with the rope - thirteen turns;
that which would hold him
swinging into eternity,
separating the breath of God
from the dust, the form.
The snap of a rope as the sandbag falls
and the portal is opened to beyond.
"Mother"- -.

08/21/2003

Posted on 08/21/2003
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