Death of the Prodigal



There he kneels, the old man,
Still, staring at the headstone,
Boring holes into the fresh patch of earth
Between the plastic hearts, wicker wreaths,
Flowers doomed never to die,
Perched on three thin metal legs.
I wonder, is his heart perched there
Among them, waiting for a strong wind
To push it away
To keep vigil at some other stone?

…Run, kill the fatted calf,
The one we’ve fed for such an occasion,
For the returning prodigal;
Cook it and bury it deep
Beside the resting child,
A feast for the damned…

He rises, crosses the freshly-cut green
Growing between the graves;
I smile as he passes, and he tells me,
“He was my son, but he was a Philistine.
He was a Philistine, but he was my son.”
As if it were my heart, I offer
My hand, a token, but he continues
Past, weaves between the stones,
Making a cross at each one, and like a prayer
Says again, “He was my son…”

© Sean Taylor
Font size:
Collection  PDF     
 

Submitted by seanhtaylor on May 20, 2021

Modified on April 10, 2023

51 sec read
7

Quick analysis:

Scheme XAXXXXBXXA XCXXXX DXXDCEXXBC E
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 878
Words 170
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 10, 6, 10, 1

Sean Taylor

Sean Taylor writes short stories, novellas, novels, graphic novels and comic books (yes, Virginia, there is a difference between comic books and graphic novels, just like there's a difference between a short story and a novel). In his writing life, he has directed the “lives” of zombies, super heroes, goddesses, dominatrices, Bad Girls, pulp heroes, and yes, even frogs, for such diverse bosses as IDW Publishing, Gene Simmons, and The Oxygen Network. He also posts religious and political content from time to time. But not nearly as much as writing content. Between horror movies and cartoons, that is. Visit him online at www.thetaylorverse.com and www.badgirlsgoodguys.com (or follow his faith blog at www.filthyragsanddirtycups.blogspot.com). [He, Him] more…

All Sean Taylor poems | Sean Taylor Books

1 fan

Discuss the poem Death of the Prodigal with the community...

0 Comments

    Translation

    Find a translation for this poem in other languages:

    Select another language:

    • - Select -
    • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
    • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
    • Español (Spanish)
    • Esperanto (Esperanto)
    • 日本語 (Japanese)
    • Português (Portuguese)
    • Deutsch (German)
    • العربية (Arabic)
    • Français (French)
    • Русский (Russian)
    • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
    • 한국어 (Korean)
    • עברית (Hebrew)
    • Gaeilge (Irish)
    • Українська (Ukrainian)
    • اردو (Urdu)
    • Magyar (Hungarian)
    • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
    • Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Italiano (Italian)
    • தமிழ் (Tamil)
    • Türkçe (Turkish)
    • తెలుగు (Telugu)
    • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
    • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
    • Čeština (Czech)
    • Polski (Polish)
    • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Românește (Romanian)
    • Nederlands (Dutch)
    • Ελληνικά (Greek)
    • Latinum (Latin)
    • Svenska (Swedish)
    • Dansk (Danish)
    • Suomi (Finnish)
    • فارسی (Persian)
    • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
    • հայերեն (Armenian)
    • Norsk (Norwegian)
    • English (English)

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Death of the Prodigal" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/100486/death-of-the-prodigal>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    March 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    2
    days
    14
    hours
    6
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    Who wrote the poem "O Captain! My Captain!"?
    A Emily Dickinson
    B Ezra Pound
    C Samuel Taylor Coleridge
    D Walt Whitman