My Five Senses

I could sense something was wrong So I went to see moving carefully among the trees, I saw a building of harsh stone Unforgiving standing alone, I crept up with stealth to see through a small window Hoping it would reveal what was inside, Curious me, with my curious nature. Looking in like I spy I saw things that were vile, This building was a slaughter house A place of death, a place of pain. Peering in I saw animals queuing up to be put to death Cows on the right and pigs hung from hooks on the left, No hope or salvation Just simply death And I saw the terror in their eyes To me this was no shock or surprise. I crept around too the door And was not prepared for what I saw, Blood running like a river as they slit pigs throats As they fired into the head of the cow a bolt, I could smell the blood and smell the death And in that moment I felt bereft, I could hear the deafening terrified screams From the pigs as they were dying, Then sent into searing hot water and steam So as to strip the skin with comparative ease, The cows were hauled up on hooks To suffer the same fate, if I am not mistook. In this place I could almost taste The sickening meat on display, I moved inside where a cow was hanging I stroked the hair upon its face, Said a prayer for its soul And felt the disgrace carried out by the human race, I could feel the last of the warmth evacuate. I touched, smelt, saw, heard and tasted the death of animal innocence And vowed never to eat meat again, A man came over and tried justifying this Saying that they were bred for it. I was not convinced, I just felt sick, I said nothing but left Double quick, This obscenity would now live with me Long on in my thoughts, dreams and memories.