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I watched an eagle soar through proud but vacant
skies
until my eyes
grew stiff with studying
and then I
fixed my gaze on it
and froze it
there
The way was obvious - forward through the marshes
forward over
Pisgah and the Jordan
down through
Jericho and Moriah to
Jerusalem
But the axe that I carried had turned blunt on me
and fragile
futile as a memory
frozen like
an eagle hovering
an eagle
with its wings clipped by the sun
Before
the shadow sets
Before
the desert grows too cold
Before
these stones have hardened
Before
the city on the sands
Before
the wise men call me arid
I travelled slowly over stubborn empty sands
until my hands
grew stiff with grovelling
and then I
fixed my gaze upon the town
and wandered
there
The path was wide and winding - stumbling over rocks
stumbling over
stones of words
carrying them
on towards Zion towards
Jerusalem
But the voice I had borrowed had turned dry on me
a voice of
stone in an arid desert
on a loose
tongue in a parched mouth
through a
dead land
As the shadow falls
As the desert grows and
gathers
As the hearts turn stony
As the city fills with
fools
As the wise men call me
The lawyers argued with me loud but hollow words
until their
thoughts grew stiff with arguing
and then they
fixed their gaze upon me
and cursed
me there
The road was blocked with soldiers - over the rough
stones
with the rough
stones at my back - over the hills
and onward to
Gehenna from
Jerusalem
But the fruit I had gathered had turned sour on me
and lingered
in the mouths of caves
the hollow
mouths the hollow caves
the stone
symbols of these feet of clay
When
the shadow lengthens
When
the desert turns to dust
When
the hearts have hardened
When
the city sleeps
When
the wise men call
Remember
Stone
breaking stone with stone
Leeches
clinging on the backs of leeches
Remember
"Elijah" is published in "Welcome To My World, Selected Poems 1973-2013", The Argaman Press. Click here to purchase the book.
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Copyright © 2014 David Prashker
All rights reserved
The Argaman Press
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