Hiding in the Woods

Sitting on the couch in contemplation

Hopping from reality to daydream

I heard of a young child’s hopeless cry

Sucking his mother’s breast that had run dry

I saw people groomed for a feast

Sitting on upholstered spotless pews

In a large air-conditioned Christian church

Praying to God their faith would make them rich

A wooden cross hanging on the wall

Cast a sad glance, all dusty and forlorn

I saw half-naked children tied to a chair

Working with their hands like small machines

In a hot and semi-lighted old warehouse

Their faces drenched in a grimy sweat

Their cheeks carved by streaking tears   

Not knowing why they had been born

I saw a weeping girl crouched on soiled floor

Her knees tightly squeezed, her head prostrate

Her skirt all torn, stained by the bastard seed

Of man’s most vile and desecrating deed

The radio played songs of Sunday’s choirs

My ears were deaf to those angelic tunes

Inside me I heard wailing and despair

Anger repressed, evil-begetting hate

I saw no beauty, no redeeming grace

Just broken hearts, a horrified face

I could no longer bear the stench of greed

The hopeless anguish of the oppressed in need

I went for a stroll deep in the woods

Treading on a blanket of dry snow

Patting tree trunks as I was passing by

Maples and birches naked and asleep

Green needles of old pine waved in the breeze

Tracks of moles and mice marking the snow

Footprints of fox and deer seeking a meal

Nature seemed immersed in silent prayer

I felt at peace with the universe

My eyes were blind, my ears deaf

The world kept on groaning, its cry

Rocked the heavens and pierced the open sky