Sunday, November 22, 2015

Over Hills

   

                   
  Over hills, beyond the fens,
You’ll find the mountain’s foot;
Dark it is, and often cold,
With clouds as black as soot.


We travel, through the deepening mist,
And come we then at last
In evening dark, though stars shine bright,
To base of  mountain high.


No man may enter there alone,
For years it’s been this way,
An evil dwells there, deep inside,
Where bright red fire burns.


Gold there is too, people say,
A hidden dragon-hoard,
More gold lies there than any king
Has won with his brave sword.


As we stand there in the mist,
We gaze at the dark sight
Of mountain high, with gold beneath
Hidden by strange art.


We will not enter there, we know,
For dangers lie within;
The sight of gold can cast a spell 
On you, or me, or them.

Maura Tuffy

Sunday, November 1, 2015

A Poem for All Souls'--In Paradisum



The night is still; no noises in the air.
We walk in chilly silence down the nave.
The coffin on the dais, still and cold-
Dona Eis Requiem, Sempiternam.


The soul is on its way to Heaven now;
We heap black earth by spadeful on the grave.
A stone cross at the coffin's head will stand-
Dona Eis Requiem, Sempiternam.

Some prayers are uttered, softly, by the grave,
And silently the thurible is swung.
Grey smoke is blown like ashes on the wind-
Dona Eis Requiem, Sempiternam.

The moon shines brightly in the cloudless sky,
We turn to make our way quietly home;
From each of us but one last prayer is said;
Dona Eis Requiem, Sempiternam.

Maura Tuffy