He was beyond tired
His brittle bones
Made due
The body he was carrying
And he struggled
Step upon step
Through the thorn covered weeds
And hard rock clay
That further weakened
His already
Weakened body

I am
An old man
He cried to himself
My body ages
And exhaustion slows me
To a crawl

He gasps for breadth
Then pushes himself
Forwards
Upwards
Atop rocks
Through thorn covered weeds
Steadfastly
Moving
Ever so slowly
Upwards
Until
He had reached
The base
Of the mount

The old man paused
As he looked upward
At the towering
Peaks
Of the stone laden crag
At the edge of eternity
And shuddered
In disbelief
At the journey
That had been chosen
For him

And he collapsed
With despair
At the daunting task
That had been set forth
Upon himself

The old man
Humbled by doubt
Succumbed
To his age
And stoically
Sat
With the image of God
Etched into his memory
Since time
Itself
Had begun

GOD!

He bellowed
At the top of his lungs
Then bowed his head
In silent devotion
As he began to pray

Father
I am weakened by mortality
Yet you have sent for me
To journey
Into the perils of the unknown
Why do you call my name

I am old
And my body wastes
As the days unfold

Who am I to question ways
Who am I to measure days

My life is short
And I have been corrupted
By sin and shame

Time
Marches
To the mind of youth
And I am old
And I am lame
Why
Oh Lord
Have I been chosen
To lead the flock
When death
Is but a blink away

And he waited
For an answer
That never came

The old man continued his journey
And he climbed
In misery
Till he could climb no more

Weary bones
On sacred stones
The old man knelt
To pray

Mesmerized
By the thought of
God
The old man looked away
And he saw
His end
His end of days

Who am I
He asked his God

Why do I seek
What should not be sought
You gave me life
You gave me form
You gave me reason
To be born
Yet I question
The sorrows
Of the rain
When the life
I cherish
Holds tears
And pain

And the old man wept
With shame
And humility
Until he could weep no more
Until the silence of sleep
Redeemed his soul

He stood
And watched the clouds
Float gently across the dawn

It was a new day

Staff in hand
Rod crested
To the heavens of blue
He stepped upward

He climbed
As he complained
Inwardly
In silence
Of his journey
Fearing God's wrath
If he complained aloud

And his mind
Silenced
In awe
Of the Almighty

The wind blew gently
As he steeped his climb
His beard
Scrolled downward
In a swirl of curls
Rested on his shoulders

His hair
White with age
Flowed backward
Towards time

And he traveled on

The old man sped
As he moved
To the beat
Of the ancient
One
His memories
God's will
Of the past
Brought fulfillment
As he remembered
His youth

Freshness
Filled his mind
He had been like a king
His subjects beckoned him welcome
When their names
Parted the lips
Of his tongue
And they bowed
To the presence
Of his greatness

Yet he was mortal
And he knew not the greatness of his soul
He was man
Born of flesh
He feasted on life
And rejoiced
In the pleasures of the skin
When time was new
And eternity was his
And he had sinned
Against the God
He had so come
To love

The old man
Creaking forward
Trod on the footprints of the goat
That had walked
The path only minutes before
And he offered to his God
A burnt offering
Of flesh
To remove from his soul
The sins of his complaints
And he climbed
Once more
Avoiding the dung
That lie
In stench
Smoldering, by the flies of disease
And he sped his gait

His vision mirrored himself
As he crossed
The glistening liquid
Of a tiny stream
And the image he saw
Was not of a king

His tattered fleece
Torn
By a bush of thorns
Hung shabbily
Mocking the greatness of his past
A forgotten prince
Of a forlorn people

And his pace slowed
As he arched his path
Skyward
Into the lights
Of the nighttime sky
And he prayed
For the strength
To persevere

High into the heavens
His gait
Was halted
As he weighed into the me
Of a tattered mind
And he remembered the turbulence
Of his Exodus
From the land of his beginnings

His promise kept
To free his people
He brought plague unto Egypt
And death to its first born son
And all Egypt
Could see
The parting of the sea
And its people cried
As they let his people go

Moses
God's voice called

I am your Lord
And you are my servant

And Moses looked
But could only hear
The voice of God

He bowed towards his Master
And he spoke
In a voice
Of softness

God...
Your will is my doing
And I am humbled by your presence
I come to you
At the top of the mount
As you have commanded
And I fear your wrath

And he bowed
To the Spirit
Of the Lord

And the Lord cracked fire across the sky
And Moses
Saw the burning of a bush
And he knelt in fear
At the might of God's power
And he prayed for salvation

Then God commanded Moses
To lift the stone
And he held it high
Unto the Heavens

And God scorned lightning
Against the stone
And the words
Of His commandments
Appeared
One
By one

And God commanded Moses
To go down the Mount
For the people of the desert
Had become sinners
Unto the Lord

And the Lord said unto Moses
Take my commandments
I have chosen you
Among the stars
To shine light upon your
People
And they shall know
The meaning of faith

I
Am a just God and
I forgive
The sins of the people
Who call My name

And Moses
Prostrated himself
To the meaning of God
And asked
With the simplest of sincerity

Why ...
Am I the chosen one

And God
Surrounded the body
Of the old man
With warmth
And commitment
And he answered
The question

Moses
I choose you
In this universe
So veiled with corruption
As a golden rainbow
Of hope and purity
Amoungst all who dwell
In the House of Lord
For you
Above all others
Are
A pious man

And Moses
Lifted the
Ark of God's covenant
And he blessed
The Lord
For the kindness
Of his new beginning

And Moses carried
Down the mount
God's commandments
To a waiting people
A salvation of their souls
And their glory
In Heaven

And the people
Followed Moses
Into the desert
As the leader
Of their nation

And the people of Israel
Walked the sand
And God blessed
Their salvation
For they were the people
Of the God
They chose
To lead them
Into
The holiest of lands