Catacombs, Paris

A poem

© Sherryl Clark, Paris, 2008.

bones and bones and bones
and skulls, layered deep
layered neatly

once thrown like street rubbish
into pits and cemeteries
sprawled in death

anonymous and many
then collected and stacked
in deep dark caverns

lit by candles
gazed upon reverently
and blessed into keeping

now they’re a spectacle of
empty-eyed heads that watch
trails of tourists

take photos of the nameless;
footsteps echo and the bones tremble
voices soak into the shadows

nervous laughter trickles away
and death stills everyone
into silence.