Vigil For Dominic

. Vigil For Dominic Dominic, I saw you the night they carried you down the cat walk to the clinic. We were shouting and yelling, Get him to a hospital, and we banged our shoes against the bars until they came with tear-gas and hoses to drive us back to silence. All week long we kept waiting for them to bring you back, or at least give us word of your healing, but they would not even acknowledge our existence behind the bars, and one of the inmates began to pray. Saturday, they came and took your clothes. We started shouting again, Leave his damn clothes alone You bastards. Dominic’s coming back, but they looked at us as if we were crazy. Dominic, it’s been ten days since they took you away. I have counted two hundred shadows across my wall. Some of the men are whispering you won’t be back, and this morning I heard one of them crying as if someone was listening to him. The men are praying that you have escaped Dominic. Lord have mercy. All day long we have heard convicts digging and shoveling outside our windows. We hear they are Building more graves. Dominic, make them bring back your clothes. Make them bring me your shoes and your books. I want to read your diaries. I want to steady my soul with your poems. Dominic, tell me again how they can never kill you. Copyright, 2016, Kathy's Songs, Crimson Cloak Publishing