John by Cherie Priest

John

by Cherie Priest

He heard it too, the voice disemodied

reverberating through

a baptism

defining "epiphany"

crowning a king with feathers

or so they sing

of birds

and wild light spirits

(you'll know it when you hear it

when it once again

falls

descends - to people like you

to people who do need a brighter view

than what men offer here)

And the two wet men in a river

could not even feel the first shivering waves

or the breeze in their daze.

It's not every day a man is announced

as God

Reborn in a river

he was the well

he knew the nails

one for each year of witness

and his cousin, in answer

had a heart

so fine

(is yours so fine?)

and a head

so pure

(is yours so pure?)

that a king used it

instead

as payment for

a dancer.