Madness

A Poem by Alex Kneen

(I wrote this poem as I struggled with pain and confusion. I was struck by the fact that this story comes on the heels of Jesus calming the sea.)

Walking on Water - Breakers

Makoto Fujimura, 2017 Mineral Pigments on Polished Gesso on Canvas

48 1/5 × 72 1/10 in

Madness

He was screaming among the tombs

A seething midnight storm

An unquiet sea

Breaking against the brink

Waves of primal lament crashing against hallowed halls

Ebbing back in

Unanswered echoes

Haunting alcoves as sleepers kept to themselves

When dawn crossed the shoreline

A son of man seeking the living among the dead

He spoke and

Distant thunder demanded a name

“Legion,” the many said with one voice

Then a turn of tides as

Hell broke loose

In a squall cascading down into a strangely settled sea

Drowned silent

Now peace, lapping lucid over rocks and hollows

The raging madness ceased

And he was still