Introduction and Table of Contents
Introduction and Table of ContentsThe Proud BumblebeeA Fine MareReflectionMy RosesSome SecretsBlack Churches BurnThe FoxMy ZenithA Present DearBlack Lightn'gWhen Dearest Sleep Betrays My Restless MindEden AgainSome Blesséd DutyDehors ParisThe Lady and the LordShe Gazed Into My Eyes...In London Now...The CriminalMLKBlack Moses At the RiverMichael Brown of FergusonA Gladiator's CryThe Sonnet of a Warrior MartyredMandingo FightingThis PimpKiwi and Cotton Balls' Cadence [aka Ulysses and the Sirens]Judging the "Justice"Mother EarthOn Romney's Vote to Convict [aka Integrity]Sonnet (Cadence) of the American Soldier [aka Heaven's Path Through Hell]
The Sonnet of a Warrior Martyred

The Sonnet of A Warrior Martyred [aka 'Vercingetorix']

Before the mob, he stood, his shackles fast,
His bloody head unbowed, his countenance clear.
Before the seething crowd, he showed no fear,
While they, despite his fetters, stared aghast.
A tragedy cast to a moving mast.
So many legions lost to get him here.
Oh, Pyrrhic victories are always dear,
To flaunt in chains this warrior at last.
But what is booty when loved ones are dead!?
When you will ne’er love those you loved again,
No coin can soothe the heart or warm the bed,
And hollow triumph does not ease the pain.
For in the face of death his dignity
Means martyrdom and immortality.

Copright 2021 Bernard A. Quarterman, Jr.