What is supposed to be precious
What is supposed to be precious
Can be ended with a single shot
And it was, it was
Ended with a single shot
Entered through the eye
Out through the back of the skull
A surprised “Gawk!”
Then the loud thud
Of a fallen meat sack
They came to where it fell
Guns pointed, hearts pounding
They kicked the flanks
Guns still at the ready
A nervous rookie thought it twitched
Fired all the rounds in his clip
The others more surprised than afraid
Did the same till a fog appeared
After the gun smoke cleared,
They saw bloody holes on flesh
A bloody sack of meat and lead
They took pictures of the dead
Drew around where it fell
Counted the holes and shots fired
Took the gun from its fingers
Wrote some notes, and some more
Thinking how big the hole
Made by the exit wound
How pink the brain is
And the skull through crushed
Still has pieces of hair and scalp
They bagged it up
For autopsy, then the morgue
They take the meat sack
Cut it open, count the holes
Measure here, measure there
Look at the contents then ponder
After some thought
Cause and time they wrote
Then rolled it over
To store in a big freezer
They put all the notes together
Connecting dots, mixing stories
Weaving, weaving, weaving,
Until a cloth is produced
Spotless and shining
To wear and show
For the eyes of one and all
Evidence is what it’s called
To be deemed worthy agents
To be called justified agents
Righteous agents
Of righteous murder
To tell the truth
Before he became a meat sack
He was one of society’s scum
He sold drugs, he stole
His shadow made dark corners darker
Lessened safe places in the city further
He was a scourge and cancer.
Exploited weak young people
Stole their chance to grow stronger
Basically, he was a life destroyer
But he created life, too
Had two daughters who loved their father
His wife, their mother
Had already fallen under
Disease, lack of medicine
Two daughters to feed
And the empty hand of poverty
The wife fell without a fight
Cancer was hailed victor
Once four strong
Now three left together
The sickly wife left her weakness
To the youngest daughter
Three they were
Yet Death lingers on
Anxious to take another
Hoping to make a pair
Of an already wretched trio
He was a skilled carpenter
Orphaned young, supported by charity
Loved the right woman
Only with a weak composition
Was loved by the right woman
Whose spirit accepted hardship
Yet with a body less sturdy
Poor in riches, as they say
Yet abundant in love
And their treasure chest
Already pillaged and looted
Here comes life again
Somehow cruel in its coming
Scheming to take
What little that is left
A repetition of a loss
Done much too soon
Just when the eyes were dry
Something comes along
To wet them much too soon
It was much too soon
The heart had not yet recovered
That’s all he thinks
It was all much too soon
The eldest eyes spelled: “Unfair”
The youngest said: “Papa, I’m sorry”
It was a mockery of his life
But who is doing the mocking?
The power of his anger
The strength of his arms
What can it do but strike?
Strike at nothing
Not even the wind
What he had loved and brought to life
Brought to life and loved
Are they to be abandoned to suffer?
Is this the meaning of his pride?
What his manhood amounts to?
The man sold his soul in short
To save two daughters
From pain not deserved
A pathetic attempt
To make sense of the absurd
Saving two lives while destroying others
Answering absurdity
With an absurdity of his own
Only two hours ago
This now sack of meat
Had been fighting for his life
To his mind,
He fought to protect
They came to take away
To deprive him once again
They may have been just
But they have no right
To his precious ones…
To his precious girls…
They just have no right
He fought with men
But not the law
Gun with gun.
Life with life.
All had the ability
But none had the right
All fired to protect
Yet aim to take away
In the same movement
With powder and bullet
It was a fair fight,
But none had the right
What is supposed to be precious
Was ended in a single shot
Now the man is a meat sack
His death was fair
You might even call valiant
For one being outgunned
His death was fair
But what about his loss?
He is scum
Because he lost.
What about his girls?
He is scum because he lost
Something precious lost
In a single shot was lost
All had the ability
But none the right
December 2007
