IN THE HOURGLASS OF TIME

The long ships wander aimlessly following a winding perilous course.
Landing upon beaches they befriended the black race.
To lie in wait and ambush.
The legions lunge their onslaught.
Incessantly in a destructive swarm that crushes anything in its path.
Black men without disguise stood proudly.
In their fear ---- tenaciously unwilling to yield or be seduced.
They fought to the death/
They were manacled and lead on a forced marathon to the long ships.
Their footsteps shuffle thunder over the ground.
The chains rattle the Chimes of Freedom.
They rode within ships marooned helplessly abandoned.
They were given meager rations of bread and water.
The whip cracks faster ---- faster////
In an awful rowing the chained are depleted of strength.
Whirling in a violent windstorm in the galleys of their minds.
Not in harmony the long ships are still propelled forward.
Facing the hardships of the voyage to the New World.
The gale wind's whipped around the Cape of Fear.
Is nothing compared to mankind's destruction yet to come?
The tyrannical oppression weighed heavily ----
upon their minds and spirits.
For they possess the power with unlimited force.
Not understanding why other men ----
would in such grisly treachery inflict bondage upon another?
Greedy for gratification the white man sold them into slavery.
What is a life worth ---- if you do not have to pay a price for it?
The string of black pearls is forced to the depths/
The secret storms come rattling from below ----
crashing through the whirlpool/
Maliciously they were beaten again and again.
Accepting without resistance to be release from further punishment.
The threatening menaces always looming.
Waiting ---- waiting for the occasional opportunity to escape.
The hard lines from the shadows are tormenting.
Rampaging in there crimes of crippling and maiming with such violence.
They were gathered like spectators for the whip.
The terrible lash ripped and cut their bodies leaving horrendous scars.
So they would shrink back in fear.
The anguish of desolation lies in their eyes.
They yield to the whims and desires of the white man.
But their spirits were unyielding for liberty.
Their minds never remained at rest.
In the quagmire of quicksand they are isolated.
They could not look the masters in the eyes.
Had to muffle their utterances indistinctly to prove their ignorance.
In the quest to read and write ----
they were oppressed for this kind of insurrection.
The white man had a fear that this plague would spread like wild fire,
and not perish in a timely manner.
What could not be destroyed completely ----
were the stories told for 1,000 centuries?
White man beat drum////
In the darkness their voices mingled for brief intervals of time.
What crimes of there souls must they render to?
They stood alone in the darkness of day.
Through the darken shadows of time.
Where shadows travail over the horizon.
The dark riders gallop forward.
The Buffalo Soldiers did not whimper nor cry out.
Where are the Badges of Courage ----
that languishes and waits in the dust?
Where are the Medals of Honor ----
that should be bestowed on the right color?
What are the colors that will turn to crimson?
Unknown heroes have fallen in Red Blood.
Black crystal tears have fallen into the Hourglass of Time.
Where are the faded photographs that diminished to yellow?
Lying still and buried in some History Book.
The whites ask ---- '' WHO ARE THE BUFFALO SOLDIERS?''
As the Buffalo Soldiers ride into eternity.
In the Great Halls of Immortality ---- the spirits of black warriors rest.
The black trees cannot hide the hangings ----
only to be seen in the light of day.
The crosses are consumed by fire.
When the words come raging from the depths to the surface.
Whose anger will bridge the gap between Childhood ---- Manhood?
From the ashes a black man says ---- '' I HAVE A DREAM.''
So many tortures ---- so few lines to be written////

©Copyright April 2006 by Rick Ryckman

“Saving the Lieutenants Hair” by Dale Gallon
April 25, 1875, near the mouth of the Pecos River, Val Verde County, Texas, Troopers of the Seminole-Negro Indian Scouts earn the Medal of Honor by rescuing their commanding officer.