Friday, May 27, 2011

By the Bedside of a Dying Man

Death clearly in the room,

hovering,

attending the intricate details

of departure,

waiting for permission

to descend and revoke the

transient contract of the living.

 

He spoke to me

of his confusion,

of his search for meaning

regarding the undeniable

status of his dying,

trying to extricate

the greedy cancer that

gripped his body,

replacing order with chaos,

stability with ruin,

trying to end its siege

with the power of his mind.

 

He was beyond consolation,

I took his feeble hand and

held it,

it was a final good-bye

to a man approaching the

portal of the ultimate silence

that puts all worldly considerations

to final rest.