Poem: The keys to God

Poem: The keys to God

The keys to God

I walked along the lino
Where the little children trod,
I knelt before the statues
That had found the keys to God,
And the statues never answered
But they looked so cool and wise,
And a vacant kind of wisdom
Kept on smiling from their eyes.

I bowed my head and whispered
All the love I felt within,
I beat my childish heart
For having entertained a sin,
I looked up at the statues
And it seemed their eyes did shine.
But the only tears that sparkled
In the place were tears of mine.

I spoke and heard an echo
Whisper round the blocks of stone,
I felt a mighty company
Though I was all alone,
But I knew the statues listened
And I knew they had the keys,
So I kept my small hands patterned
And I stayed down on my knees.

Now the feet of little children
Tread the lino where I trod,
And I stand before the statues
That have sold the keys to God,
And the statues still don't answer
But they look so cool and wise,
And a vacant kind of wisdom
Keeps on smiling from their eyes.

Denis Kevans

From GLW issue 276