A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE

Red
the color of blood
from birth
spilt upon the dirt
in a damp
filthy
cave
echoing
with cries
of pain
and tiny screams
of life.
Moment of longing
met in the swaddling
darkness of obscurity
under a starry night
with voices carried
by a desert wind
making
sacred proclamations
of eternal
renewal,
a promise fulfilled.
The incarnate savior
in the arms of
a young
lowly
mother