jacob

the brakes echo through the desert town

jacob leaves his bloodstained dreams on the train
"this night the angels smile,"
he mumbles when he descends
scraping the dried mud from his boots
on the curbstones

he faces the crowd at the other end of the platform
solemnly strides on

"behold! behold!"
the preacher hollers
"he is the son, the father, the spirit..."
"... the sun
he is the sunrise, the sunset, the noon and the shadow,"
jacob continues
remembering his family's worn faces
above the gate

his doom lies in his eyes
his eyes burn