“For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.” Matthew 13:12
His wish was for eternity, flesh
of the sun to mask his corruption; yet
he got his wish the instant Carter’s
torch shone through that chiseled hole: An afterlife
lived only through posterity, outshining
his ignominious end, all
made possible by legions of lackeys who worked
and then died.
Fast forward the centuries
and see little has changed, though
the flesh of the gods
is in bars, hidden in vaults underground, never
seen— like the hopes and dreams of peace,
these rigged scales of elusive justice. We are
left to scrap and save what we can
in a manufactured, finite
world, this theatre underfoot
none like us shall inherit. There is, after all,
only one sun in the sky
and Osiris lies in pieces, unable
to be mended again
© copyright Davidi F. Barker 2012
Ciscography 
osiris lies in pieces…great closure on this…
We are
left to scrap and save what we can
in a manufactured, finite
world, this theatre underfoot
none like us shall inherit….great bit of commentary that…
i really like how you go from archaeology, to history and then bring it round to present day…well played sir…
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Thank you so much Brian – really appreciate that, as with your poetry tonight – good luck to you, sir.
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This is so good, David. You did such a create job incorporating mythology into this powerful poem. One thing that struck me was the reference to the dismemberment of Osiris as it parallels with the chaos in Egypt and many Middle Eastern countries right now. Perhaps a Pharoah, a reincarnation of Osiris, might be helpful.
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I love ancient Egypt, its history and artifacts. Love the pyramids, the ancient Gods and, their enduring mysteries. Your words do magic to the subjects. Gold (riches/powers) are all so worshiped now above and beyond all else. And yes, Osiris ( a bit like Humpty dumpty but much more seriously) lies in pieces. Beautiful Poetry.
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I, too, like the ending and:
the flesh of the gods
is in bars, hidden in vaults underground, never
seen— like the hopes and dreams of peace,
these rigged scales of elusive justice
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This is a wonderful poem. I was there in 2009 and climbed down into the Red Pyramid (not one in that shot). I too appreciate how you tied history into today and handled the connecting points so well.
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the final and last line is also my favorite.. just gorgeous!! 🙂
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There is, after all,
only one sun in the sky
and Osiris lies in pieces, unable
to be mended again….love how you touch on different topics with this..and the embedding of the old egypt and archaelogy worked so very well
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David this was brilliant..loved the way you started with Bible verse…one of my favourites..the flesh of the gods is in bars….what a beauty
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Inside the Pyramids there is nothing left, everything is moved to the Egyptian museum in Cairo, and yes, you are right, there’s only one sun left and so many lost pieces of such a great part of the history. Shame the Egyptians don’t do much to keep their treasures safe. If you haven’t been to Egypt, you should go, it’s unbelievably huge source of inspiration. I’ve been there several times and still I feel like I’ve seen nothing. Thank you for this poem David!
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Beautifully done! The ending is just exquisite.
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Very cool. Always the gold king somewhere lurking. k.
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Truly it relates to our present as well as our past…that nothing truly changes, sometimes done in a slightly different way but all is the same! Awesome poem David…awesome!
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David, this is really powerful, a piece that I can really feel and agree with. It calls into play all of those themes that resonate deeply with me, justice, time, modern capitalism. Excellent poem with much for me to think about.
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Very well done! I love the last line!
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Unfortunately this is really too true:
…little has changed, though
the flesh of the gods
is in bars, hidden in vaults underground, never
seen…
and it’s a shame.
none like us shall inherit.
even though in the end Osiris lies in pieces beneath the same sun we all labor under.
This is great poetry.
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Quite powerful, David. Such a strong, authoritative voice in this one, and a subject that I think is on the minds of many. I like the way you’ve connected back to the past, intertwining history with the present. Perhaps if we paid more attention to history, our present would be more promising. Great poetry, as ever.
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Hi. I agree, the image of Osiris in pieces is very compelling, and final. Jane
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Thank you Soma
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Victoria, thank you so much!
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I have nominated you for the One Lovely Blog Award. If you like, visit the post at
http://eclipseofthemoon.wordpress.com/2012/08/01/one-lovely-blog-award/
and copy and Paste the Award to your blog.
With full understanding if you not wish to participate in Awards,
and with love
//Eclipse
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Great poem, David. Sadly, nothing HAS changed, and the same sun still shines in the sky… I’m thankful for poems like this that can spark deep thought – and awakenings of consciousness.
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Excellent, David!
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Hi! You are most kind and I am very grateful!
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Thank you Betty – I really appreciate this.
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