this is the dead land
this is cactus land
here the stone images
are raised, here they receive
the supplication of a dead man's hand
under the twinkle of a fading star
is it like this
in death's other kingdom
waking alone
at the hour when we are
trembling with tenderness
lips that would kiss
form prayers to broken stone
this is the way the world ends
this is the way the world ends
this is the way the world ends
not with a bang but a whimper
the eyes are not here
there are no eyes here
in this valley of dying stars
in this hollow valley
this broken jaw of our lost kingdoms
between the idea
and the reality
between the motion
and the act
falls the shadow
for thine is the kingdom
between the conception
and the creation
between the emotion
and the response
falls the shadow
life is very long
between the desire
and the spasm
between the potency
and the existence
between the essence
and the descent
for thine is the kingdom
