Last Words

He lays, sunken eyed, in his bed-like coffin.
His lips, in a constant senseless motion.
The strong smell of death lingers in the air,
As lost hope searches for some other dream.

A coarse voice chants a prayer for new life,
As begging hands beckon to the skies.
Darkness surrounds the small room
As grieving voices confabulate in silent cries.

Tear-beckoning hymns whisper comfort
In the ears of those who had been robbed
Of future memories and loving care,
And of the tears that were yet to be sobbed.

The vicar reads in a monotonous voice,
As if to display the constancy of God’s love.
Silence takes its place as the music fades away,
A silent ‘Amen’ completes the reassurances from above.

One by one, the victims of bereavement
Take their turns to shed the last tear.
They utter poignant last words to the still corpse
Wishing the eternal reunion would draw near.