Thursday, April 18, 2019

Death's Lament: An Easter Poem


Death’s Lament
(An Easter Poem)

So long I have kept watch
at a door whose
key alone
I possess

But now this upstart
divine avatar
dares rob
me of my
prize

I watched as they stored
his broken body
in one of
my tombs-
And once again
I
slammed the door

And now on this third day
a terrible sunrise
seems to burn away
my shadowy
power

O the sadness I feel
as he stands
there
in front of a
weeping woman
who sees him not

What shall I now do?
my hands empty
for I have laughed
so long
at their everlasting
defeat, all
because of me

Now my lament is deep
for he is alive again
not so much for him
as
for them

What is this haunting
word that
pierces my dark
heart much
as
his hands and feet
were marked?

Its sound frightens me
and now I sense
that
all will be
transformed-
This word that changes
everything-
that changes me-
“Resurrection”

Jody Seymour
Easter 2019

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Crazy Religion: A Poem for Holy Week- The thoughts of Pontius Pilate


Crazy Religion
A poem for Holy Week
(The thoughts of Pontius Pilate)

Their crazy religion creates
empty Hosannas
that sound full
Promises for them have
been so broken
and their memories
long dead now
desire
resurrection

But there shall be no
new life in
their desert of hope
This surprising cactus
that appears to
bloom
will soon be
cut down

They think him some king
but he has no
kingdom…no rule
He forgets that he is
my subject always-
his hands tied to
a reality he
cannot escape

Bring me water that I
may wash away
the residue of
their
crazy religion
I will once again kill
their longing
for a more
that
cannot be

It will be over soon-
This premature sunrise
of dusty prophecies
The sun will set on
this crazy religion
And I can go home
and sleep
and forget

Bring me water…

Jody Seymour
Holy Week 2019