We, the rescued, From whose hollow bones death had begun to whittle his flutes, And on whose sinews he had already stroked his bow- Our bodies continue to lament With their mutilated music. We, the rescued, The nooses wound for our necks still dangle Before us in the blue air- Hourglasses still fill with our dripping blood. We, the rescued, The worms of fear still feed on us. Our constellation is buried in dust. We, the rescued, Beg you: Show us your sun, but gradually. Lead us from star to star, step by step. Be gentle when you teach us to live again. Lest the song of a bird, Or a pail being filled at the well, Let our badly sealed pain burst forth again And carry us away - We beg you: Do not show us an angry dog, not yet - It could be, it could be That we will dissolve into dust Dissolve into dust before your eyes. For what binds our fabric together? We whose breath vacated us, Whose soul fled to Him out of that midnight Long before our bodies were rescued Into the arc of the moment. We, the rescued, We press your hand We look into your eye- But all that binds us together now is leave-taking. The leave-taking in the dust Binds us together with you