Man In Black

• Jack O'halloran, Grade 12
• Poetry
• 2018

As I trundle down the railway line
With gravel in my guts and the sun in my eyes,
A white horses approaches from beyond the clover
And the man in black arrives.

He dismounts the beast, and with no disclosure,
Holds a bible in one hand and a gun in the other,
As he looks me in the eye and begins to tell,
"Boy, allow me to win you over.

There's a chasm that runs between heaven and hell
Where the sun's gaze is cold and God rings His bell,
And I've been there long enough for my heart to know
That place is for no man, be good, or rebel.

So make up your mind and reap your sow,
Cause if there's one thing that I ought to know,
Its that when the man comes around to take your soul,
What will you have been living for?"