The Drunken Soldier

The drunken soldier broke down
the wrong door

Inside was a circle of saints
lifted off the ground

To the sound of gunfire
a really supernal yellow light
shone round them

His jaw dropped
and his heart stopped

In the dark of the room
he saw his place

At the cost of so much blood
so little decency

The saints admitted him
to their convocation

The rest of the world went
dizzily into the background

The rest of the war popped in his
ears like distant fireworks

The young soldier
lifted off the ground

Suddenly his age didn’t prevent him
from becoming ancient

The hearts in that room
were made of bronze and
royal copper

In their burnished surfaces
the Face of God shone resplendently

The drunken soldier
broke down the wrong door

Inside was a family of saints
huddled together

In the death of decency
so much bloodshed

The circle of saints
admitted him to their company

The drunken soldier
broke down the wrong door

Inside they
broke bread

---

1/22/2008 (from The Fire Eater’s Lunchbreak)

Categories: Poems