To Rest In Peace

They were men of the north

suitably suited

in black dense as new hewed coal

or dark grey shiny as wet slate

or, rarely, the midnight blue

of a northern night sky.

It was a formal occasion

this laying to rest

of the dull grey

past known,

of the bright red

future hoped for.

They laid them to rest

with broken flowers

petals crushed

with ashes

and dust.

It was a formal occasion

this laying to rest

in peace

or not.

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