Monday, February 24, 2014

The Lady of the Crossroads



The lady of the crossroads
Stepped out into traffic
Pushed a kid to safety
Quickly genuflected
Then she met her maker on the hood of a 66 Corvette
Never hesitated; no sign of regret

Madonna of the schoolyard
Impossible to equal
A carrot and a cudgel
No chance of a sequel
The sisters said she died before she ever knew man's love
In that state of purity so treasured up above
St. Mary of the crossroads
The lady of the crossroads

The subdivision's patron saint
A 20th century martyr
She died without the faintest taint
Before time or trouble got her

Woman in a doorway
Hair done up in curlers
Gazing at the traffic
Smoking Camel filters
Expressionless she watches as the grisly scene unfolds
Silently she turns away and lets the door slammed closed
The lady of the crossroads
St. Mary of the crossroads

The subdivision's patron saint
A 20th century martyr
Laid down her life without complaint
Before time or trouble got her

Walking down the highway
Girls in summer dresses
Bobbie pins and hair spray
Holding back their tresses
And they dream of lace and kisses
A husband for a wife
Little lambs scampering
Towards the butcher's knife
St. Mary of the crossroads
The lady of the crossroads

For Mary B. Lewis

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