The Bell Tolls
…for whom it tolls I do not know
The bell tolls
it seems far away
sombre and slow
for whom it tolls
I do not know
I hear the whispers
of tortured souls
drifting upon a cold wind
birds flying
in ever declining circles
their mournful cries
sounding out
into the emptiness
echoing gently back to me
the once staccato beat
fading away into the distance
my heart keeps time
with the constant bell
now sounding out
in long softened notes
mists drift
across the surface of the still lake
shadows pass over me
swirling ghostly and silent
and I feel them
like a whisper upon my skin
or cold wind
across the surface of my grave
the birds now murmuring
in muted tones
as they carry me away
their wings beating
in time to the gentle song
of my now fallen heart
the bell tolls once more
it no longer seems
so far away
sombre and slow
for whom it tolls
I now know
© Ann Bagnall
