The bells done rung
by Shann Palmer
Watch the sun walk the sky while
below shadow waits to takes us in,
its long tongue lapping up hope.
A man who pays attention wears a hat,
carries an umbrella, holds his heart
in a righteous place, how steady he runs.
The song said ‘you gotta serve somebody’, well
here comes the new god, same as the old—
Don’t let him catch you, don’t look back.
Sun’s not like you with your work undone,
his job’s secure till heaven rains fire, you can’t
get close to that, let go and live a-humble.
Shann Palmer (blog), a Texan living in Richmond, Virginia, hosts readings, workshops, and open mikes in Central Virginia. Published in print and on the web, she has recent work in Short, Fast, and Deadly, Lingerpost, and Redheaded Stepchild, and poems forthcoming in Poetry South and the Dead Mule School of Southern Literature.
Nice!
Excellent poem, evocative and emotional imagery.