The Cross Near the Edge
A too small cross
in a big wayside shrine
amidst the fields
on the fertile loess soil,
soon to be devoured
by the bucket wheel excavator,
a monstrous word
for an even more monstrous machine.
The shrine made of dark red brick,
plain, simple, solid,
almost for eternity,
like the many farmhouses here;
The corpus on the cross alone,
Jesus without his mother,
without his best friend,
fighting a lost cause,
seemingly forgotten,
only in the company of
a little pedestal and some plastic waste.
Previously cherished and cared for
by devout Christians
who populated these now deserted country lanes,
on foot, with their tractors, on their bikes –
like my grandfather.
Now I know what I’m doing here,
why my bike is lying on the ground,
in the tall grass:
I’m standing here on behalf
of so many
before the abandoned Son of God
to whom grandpa prayed
day and night.
When the bucket wheel excavator
moves just a little closer
all these crucified Jesuses,
all these saints
from the many wayside crosses,
from the now forever closed
chapels and churches
will leave this disappearing country
with the inhabitants
in one big exodus –
possibly finding a new homeland
where people still pause
on their way
to thank God for His creation,
to ask His advice
so that they won’t go astray.
Author Bio: Frank Joussen
Frank Joussen is a German teacher, writer, translator and editor. His publications include two selections of his poetry, one of them being a bilingual collaboration with Romanian poet Ana Cicio. He has co-edited two international anthologies of poetry/fiction in India and one of short stories in Germany. His poems and short stories have also been published in a variety of literary magazines and anthologies in India, Australia, G.B., the Republic of Ireland, Germany, Romania, Malta, the U.S.A., Canada, India, China, Thailand and Japan; some of them have been translated into German, Romanian, Hindi and Chinese. His latest publications include Pulsar (G.B.), Panku Poems (Canada) and Earthborne (Australia), FreeXpresSion (Australia), Personal Bests Journal (G.B.), Setu (U.S.A.) and Phenomenal Literature (India).