Universal

I have been with my eldest child
Where she lay small and in pain.
I was bouncing her bed to sleep
To sleep to the song of the oldest prayer,
To one of the oldest songs of love,
Known to Priam and Hector at Troy
Known to Lear, Known to Kent,
Known to the heart that pumps in a jar,
Known to the crowd at the accident.
I want to die before you die
I want to die before you die.

Paul Anthony Hutchinson
http://www.paulanthonyhutchinson.com
Copyright Paul Anthony Hutchinson
This poem was published in Canadian Poetry
Thirty five years ago