SUCCESSION

It matters little when a monarch falls—
a stately shudder
followed by a crash
among his startled underlings:
A moment later,
birds resume their calls—
the sky is dark
with downreturning wings.

November 25, 1963

Copyright © Robert D. Sutherland, 1963
Published in CHARLATAN #1 (1963) Centerspread foldout containing poems responding to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, November 23, 1963.