A Riddle in Troubled Times - b. armstrong

[Larry Robinson]

A Riddle in Troubled Times

  A grain of It is next to naught
  a half is half corrupted,
  the whole…?
  if even a single
  link is compromised,
  the chain cannot 
  secure its anchor
                  
 If Its provenance is
 God Almighty
 as theologians claim,       
 pray which deity
 do they mean,
 and for the love of God 
 what is a Holy War?
                        
 If It is just 
 a matter of consensus,
 can fast-talking-double-dealing
 politicians wear their slogans gauzy;
 then can a multitude of ranting-chanting,
 banner-toting, blindly-voting citizens
 be        dead       wrong 

 Scientists insist Its place is in their forge
 to assay and refine for all mankind,
 
but might It be the poets’ rightful realm,
I mean the ones who understand the currency
and can navigate in unpredictable terrain.
Undeterred by what may be revealed,
they spelunk ice caves at the poles
to test their tolerance for stinging cold
           
In search of It,
they’ll sift through bones
of buried civilizations
unearthing at last 
none other than
their own familiar skulls                                 
                                                                       
	- b. armstrong