Belief

 She did not believe 


She did not believe in the after life

The life hereafter was all a con;

She judged in that decisive way

She brought to business and to love. 


Dismissed in youth and ne’er recalled

What was rejected no longer held 

As she moved to better things

Or things that felt much stronger. 


Her younger brother was unsure

And sought to hedge his future

He sneaked into Sunday Mass 

Before the Creed recital. 


He outlived his siblings and died

In a nursing home in his eighties 

Stricken with fear and concern

Unsure of what lay before him. 


Happy those who die a good death

Who feel the welcome of the Lord

When they answer to his call

Into his house high up in heaven. 


Blessed are they without a pause

Who cross the river from this life

Without ambition or fear

At peace at last in safety. 

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