Swan Upon Leda

A husband waits outside
A crying child pushes a child into the night
She was told he would come this time
Without leaving so much as a feather behind
To enact at last the perfect plan
One more sweet boy to be butchered by men

But the gateway to the world
Was still outside the reach of him
Would never belong to angels
Had never belonged to men
The swan upon Leda
Empire upon Jerusalem

A grandmother smuggling meds
Past where the god child-soldier Setanta stood dead
Our graceful turner of heads
Weaves through the checkpoints like a needle and thread
Someone's frightened boy waves her on
She offers a mother's smile and soon she's gone

The gateway to the world
The gun in a trembling hand
Where nature unmakes the boundary
The pillar of myth still stands
The swan upon Leda
Occupier upon ancient land

The gateway to the world
Was still outside the reach of him
Would never belong to angels
Had never belonged to men