I’m nudged awake in the darkness
by the far off sound
of steps. I hear
his black cloak dragging across the corridor floor.
A thief who needs not the cover of night,
who comes to Take,
without discrimination, what we value most,
deaf to our protest.
He enters the room, and I see him for the first time,
he is…Unarmed,
his cloak…White,
his face…Kind.
I realize he is not Life’s Mortal Enemy,
but rather its Greatest Friend,
his purpose not to Take, but
to Give.
To Give urgency.
Hurry up, he encouraged me
Get on with it while you can.
To Give value.
What would I have done with this Life
if I thought it lasted forever? I ask.
Nothing, he replies.
And with this,
I reach for his hand,
his touch…Warm,
as he gently guides me beyond.