This was the moment when Before
Turned into After, and the future's
Uninvented timekeepers presented arms.
This was the moment when nothing
Happened. Only dull peace
Sprawled boringly over the earth.
This was the moment when even energetic Romans
Could find nothing better to do
Than counting heads in remote provinces.
It's a fairly mainstream religious poem. My friend is a Quaker, and she tells me Shelia Hancock is too. I saw Hancock in the Young Adult drama Just Henry last night, where she played Henry's grandma. She reminded me of my own grandma - proud and courageous and a bit inflexible.
