This morning
while on death row
I had a wonderful experience
of nothing so uncommon as joy,
a shower with hot water, steam and soap.
In that small space
- the shower's scarcely larger than a closet -
I thought of nothing
so common as suffering
and stood instead in awe
of the abundance of God.
Afterwards, I stood before the plain
steel door, rusted to a brownish-black,
and marveled at the spray of water drops
which shone like the sun's,
scattered along the surface
of our Universe.
And there!
An errant trickle slipped away
like a falling star,
a comet made of dust and ice
throwing itself into the heart
of the night.
I wondered, "What is this
darkness that shrouds our eyes
from the glorious dawn, and
the light that shines
in our lives ?"
There is nothing so common as suffering;
and nothing so uncommon as the morning sun,
which we manage to miss each morning
of our life.
Next time, please,
stand at the break of the dawn,
and watch it
for me.
Karl Chamberlain
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