Edward Wright Haile - Blacksnake To An Angel

I am black
therefore I rule
all things aquiver
in the ruby dark
I am long and lengthy
therefore I hunt
like thread follows limb
I am cold
therefore unseen
like rain goes under tin
I am still
therefore they come to me
those the night appoints
I am dry
with perfect mercy
swift as the bent twig
I have not the wide
heart’s void
of pity
Mine is hungry
with blood
until I am a rosary
of birds
a weekly
calendar
of mice
The man with boots
who shuns me
needs me
The orchard woman who
busts me with her rake
has me to thank
But that is all
by day
the soggy, senseless, farming
day
when children
find me and tame
my coils to glide
beneath their arms
I think they hear
their dreams
and let me go to
dandelions
black wherefore
I rule

Edward Wright Haile

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/blacksnake-to-an-angel/