Dead God We Worship

Dead God We Worship
© Surazeus
2019 03 06

Dead gods follow me on the signless road, 
howling for me to bring them back to life 
by writing poems that glorify their lives, 
but I sit mute under the apple tree 
inside ruined walls of Heaven, and sigh 
as I watch sunlight flicker on the lake. 

We founded nations, empires, and religions, 
they declare in wind that howls through old trees, 
so we want you to preserve memories 
of our deeds and speeches in noble verse 
to preserve our souls from oblivion, 
but I shiver in chill of their lost souls. 

Picking up wave-smoothed pebbles from the beach, 
I see faces of those ten thousand gods 
uncarved from essence of eternity 
smiling at me from their indifferent roundness, 
so I blow my breath on sphere of cold stone 
and toss each god back into lake of time. 

Once I have thrown all gods back in the lake, 
I listen to soft voices in wild wind 
of the nameless people who lived through time 
and struggled to survive in times of war 
when gods of their religions fought each other 
to control the souls of mortals like me. 

Wandering alone in bleak ruins of Eden, 
where the first God ruled orchard of fruit trees, 
I find the skulls of gods and men alike 
cracked and mute among flowers where buzzing bees 
gather pollen to brew honey in trees, 
so I sing with sad birds in sunset glow. 

Gathering apples in baskets on large wagon, 
that grow from rotting bodies of dead gods, 
I sing about the gentle girl I love, 
then haul my wagon to the castle gate 
where people buy them for small silver coins, 
stamped with the face of the dead god we worship.