Dispossessed Poem by Martin Moore

Dispossessed



DISPOSSESSED

A gaping wound perforated the day
A scab, clawed into contagion
An arduous ache, acute malaise
Not cauterised, yet raging
The corpuscles of grief refuse to clot
But seep slowly inward yet
The heart diminished to an arterial knot
A fissure oozing with constant threat.

I can still remember everything
My siblings seated around the bed
The monitor, its bleep and ring
My mother's hand upon his head
His rattling chest, his last deep breath
The worried looks and sighs
Another family dispossessed
The day my father died.

The sudden silence in the ward
Rare hugs and tears, the shock
The holding him in high regard
The ticking of the clock
Though time stood still, it swiftly passed
Firm rituals to be observed
Funeral arrangements, coffin, mass
The send-off he deserved

The retinue in cars behind
The solemn placing in the ground
The roses dropping single file
As the rains came tumbling down
Father, teacher, banker, friend
Giant man to mortal soul
His masons eye as he descends
Would scorn this six foot hole

"I find its features very bland,
The walls not flush" he'd remonstrate
And on entering the Promised Land
Would pause to plumb the pearly gates.

Saturday, September 23, 2017
Topic(s) of this poem: death
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Martin Moore

Martin Moore

Kilkenny, Ireland
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