I
Come–bend and pray with me.
These are times to kneel.
Though love has carried us
This far, the given is taken
In a raffling off of greed
Growing sallow and permanent.
II
I could take you by the hand
Though such things have no need
Of me, whom, idle as the flow
Of dreams has not yet learned
To condense my longings to senses.
III
But I am brought here. Where we
All have need to begin under this
Vociferous temple of songs and
Mystic figures bound together
In human strength though
The heavens show no gates.
IV
Dreams are open to us. To our love
Of elders who long ago ceased
Their midnight rituals and now
Hum. Taking to the sleeping form
What the genes in decadence swam by.
V
So it is after all that objects remain
Unaware. The potted vase soaks in.
The roses wither in rage as night takes
Dominion of the room. Abandons
To lethargic veil our sleep–
Arms and legs apart.
VI
I would take you on my way
Though we have far to go.
If your faith as pillars could stand,
I would take you by the hand,
Labor with you, in dignity
Learn to still the force of time.
VII
Come with me–I could be
For you that part of the heart
Which remembers and allows
That life is the coming and going
Of uneasy breaths.
VIII
Remember and allow for the reaching
Voices though we bear
The claps of these aching times
To the grave.
Copyright © 2021 Maryama Antoine. All Rights Reserved.
