The weeping continent is held in the sky

for all to see

as the moon, unhinged and unbalanced,

falls toward the ocean of unheeded cries,

a chaotic sea

of garbage plastic and blood-red currents.

Where were the archers in the guardian turrets

defending their see?

Now vindication for justice unclaimed

comes on the wind, a champion, urgent

as emergency,

white horse riding and eyes alive with flame.

I continue my exploration of themes of human becoming using the sandstone formations in Arches National Monument as ekphrastic poetry prompts. I was struck as I looked at this image of Turret Arch to see the rough shape of the continent of Africa in the arch space. That sparked memory of Alan Paton's 1948 novel Cry, the Beloved Country. That sparked the theme of the dehumanizing reality of long-unaddressed injustice, and just how core is the cry for justice in the human heart. And that sparked the Biblical image of Revelation 19:11-16, a promise of justice coming at the hands of One able to execute it purely, the One who Himself was executed unjustly, the One who forgave His executioners, and the One who promised to make things right one day! Maranatha is an Aramaic word that means either "O Lord, come!" or "Our Lord has come!"

Photo Credit: Skeeze on Pixabay.com: Creative Commons License