In that moment, where joy stops time,
Even then the shadows will sprawl,
The sacred birthplace of creation,
Is witness to the desert's crawl,
And every song or whispered love,
Belied in death's melancholic drawl,
Opaque.
In that moment, where grief stops breath,
Even then, holy fear attests the sacral
Within the sepulcher, where frames wither,
Bone eye holes peer beyond the natural,
And in every dirge or dance macabre,
Aurora's Seraph burns shades adumbral,
Stained.
In that moment, most knowing the alone,
Even then, hellion leviathan is denied,
A strange fellowship known in despondency,
Friendship of lepers and of the crucified,
In every tear, in every heaving breath,
Love and lament present each alongside,
Translucent.
3 comments:
The various imagery that you've crafted here is, well, stunning. "holy fear attests the sacral within the sepulcher, where frames wither, bone eye holes peer beyond the natural" -- just stunning. And meaningful as well, as this demonstrates the paradox of death bearing life.
However, the structure of the poem is cosmic in scope. The first stanza stands for creation's birth. However, there is the presence of "death" at creation and there is an atemporal figure "where joy stops time" -- these are all quite foreign to Genesis 1's creation account. Death comes through human and history; it is without precedence. And the panels of day and night and the next day during the six days of creation attests to a joy with doesn't stop time but embraces it. And so, I do not see creation as being "opaque" but rather as being incredibly "forthcoming" and "clear," that being, humans are in the image of God and are told to make culture. That is a clear agenda.
Also, your eschaton has "hellion leviathan" as being "denied" -- though Psalm 104 embraces the serpent/Leviathan, where God "sports" with this mammoth sea creature. Now, this view is in conflict with, say, Joban accounts of Leviathan and with other Psalms (see Psalm 74 and Psalm 89), where Leviathan is equated with a primordial chaos. Though Gen. 1 affirms Psalm 104, in that God made all creatures of the sea "good." Thus, even the fallen Leviathan is accepted not denied at eschaton.
Sorry, I meant to hit "preview" not "post".. the post needs editing, it is a bit sloppy. But I think you can get the overall gist of my critique ;)
Thank you for your kind critique ...I was not Wed slavishly to the days of creation in the Bible in my construction of this poem...nor any particular view of the eschaton or eschatology. Rather, I am interested here in the human experience that joys are tinted with death and the darkest places are not beyond the reach of the Love that sustains all. More mystical in association than exegetical...thanks again. How did you find the blog?
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