Death comes in threes
she says solemnly as if somehow
mere utterance of these words
will cause the Sword of Damocles
to hang teetering, teetering over the head
of some soon-to-be-dead unfortunate.
We do Last Offices;
lay him on the purest whitest sheet.
First stage (Clinical),
turn him and he groans
as last air expels from lungs
and watch horrified
as blood spills in rivers through his lips.
Can you now understand
my pain?
his dead body asks.
We lay him prostrate
as if in reverence to his God
and cleanse all that is corporeal,
gently pull his legs apart
and place padded pants.
Oh the indignity of
death
his dead body oozes.
Second Stage (Aesthetics),
he now supine, gazes
with unseeing eyes
as we again wash away his life,
trim brows and beard,
anoint him with essential oils,
dress him in his Sunday best.
I am at rest now his dead body whispers,
I am ready and we usher in his family,
leave them to their grieving.
My best friend wants me to lay her out I say
as we both drained,
clutch at warming coffee cups.
Y’know she says,
on my way into work today
there were magpies, four strutting confident.
Four for death.
Do you think…?
Just as I mean to tell her she is stupid
I see crow and catch my breath
as he tap tap taps upon the window.
Caw, caw, caw(pse) he advises
as he views me with his beady eyes,
and one not prone to superstition,
nevertheless, a chill shivers down my spine.
Anna :o]
An oldie shared with the good folk at dVerse OLN, hosted by the lovely Sanaa. Cheers Sanaa!
Also shared at PSU's Poetry Pantry hosted by the lovely Rosemary. Cheers Rosemary!
Image: Courtesy of Flickr "Crows" by In Memoriam: Mr. Ducke is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0