The Anointing of Saul

The prophet stood before the people
And raised his winkled hands toward the
Sky. "People, my people, what have I
Done to you? Have I lifted my hand
Against you? Have I come down from
The hills to rob you? Or have I
Taken your sons and daughters from
You?" And the people mutter and roil
And answer, "You have not done these things."
"Testify before God," the prophet cries.
"So we testify." "On your own heads, then,"
He says, "For me, I will go up to
Ramah. Serve the Lord and Him only."
And so the prophet went, robes flapping
In the desert wind. And the eyes of
The people went with him for a time.

But then came Saul, tall and young and strong
And eager. And on his shoulders, which
Carry the nation, and on his brow,
Handsome and well-knit, dark, creeping things
Begin to play. "I am God's anointed,"
He says, his shining eyes toward the
People. "Praise the Lord," he says, and smiles.