Let the penetrating Light of Truth
fall upon the Heart
Radiant with Love

when death came to call
(a customary social visit)
i greeted him cordially
when he departed
i spoke:
"don't be a stranger"
now he oftens
sups
at my table
and when the repast is finished
we retire
to brandy and cigars
you see...
i am courting him
so that when he beckons
in earnest
my departure will be a
friendly retreat, on familiar grounds

let me not shudder and shake
when death comes calling
that which i loved
nourished
before the grave
so will i after, in the eternal
if my life has been spent/mis-spent
in vanity, empty within
so shall i wander
lost
in eternity
if i do not seek
true substance--spirit
Now
how shall i embody, dwell in
the formless in the here-after