Philip Ward
After a decade of attempts to annihilate his will and passions, he renounces unworldliness: he has been too violent in his desires, and is vanquished.
Hope is a matter of patience.
We give the world the rest of our lives
and something will happen a seam
of coal eventually forms out of decayed fibres.
Where the coal was detected and removed
are the empty mine-shafts now,
the subterranean passages
damp, musty, chill
reverberating with your asthmatic cough,
the feeble lamp on your head seemingly
giving no light.
Hope is a matter for patience.
We have been exploring so long
that sunlight is a worn memory.
One day we were obscured
below sight, from the boredom of men
who take fresh air for granted.
We have entered the terrible slopes
that lead to hot caverns
fumes are rising to meet us
but we shall not venture back.
Hurrying to our womb (the tenebrae
flickering on the walls)
towards the splendid illumination
of endless night.
Page(s) 72
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