Condemned’s Request
If I am 30 days from darkness
And my coffin lies ready in velvet
Then I choose to die today,
Neither to anticipate nor fear
Weeks that barrel toward hanged silence.
If I am 30 days from darkness,
Prepare my priest. Tell him
I invite God to line my casket
With innocence. Let’s see if He
Can shrink 30 days to 3.
Crooked teeth and broken nails;
My priest is dead. He lies in the velvet
Wooden coffin. Next to my casket,
I am restless.
The 3 days remain 30.
Anna Wayne Aposhian ‘07
