The sounds of chains

After Romans 8:12-23

The chains leave stains

of dirt and rust upon the wrists

and ankles, and a soreness

of the weight carried, a weight

so heavy that it seems to have been

always there, a physical defect,

with its pain, discomfort, a binding

that chafes, has chafed.

In the distance we hear

the sounds of chains breaking,

cracking, the metal fracturing

open, until it reaches these wrists,

these ankles, and splits, dropping

aside. The stains of rust and dirt

remain until washed by the rain,

cooled by the wind rustling the trees,

the groaning displaced by a song.

Photograph by Joshua Hoehne via Unsplash. Used with permission.