Four pails of water and a bagfull of salts
That is all we are, that is all a man comprises
Chemicals alone with no spirit, soul or ghost
Nothing so bizarre
No amount of faith disguises what is true
Is what we fear the most
Nothing can survive save the things
Men leave behind them
Any other case would be really too absurd
If thoughts remained alive
Surely modern science would find them
No, the soul is nothing but a word
All the wonders Man achieves
Emerge from cerebral tissue
Chemical reactions’ ebb and surge
From that Thing that is you…
It’s a sad philosophy
But better sad than wrong
Face the truth instead
When you’re dead you’re dead,
When you’re gone you’re gone
Now she’s gone
Four pails of water and a bagfull of salts
That is all she was, all my lover represented —
That sounds just as mad as saying she will never die
Fools may clutch at straws
But truth must not be circumvented
As the tree falls, so must that tree lie!
No that sounds so odd
Once I would have preached it brightly
Now questions appear I rationally can’t ignore…
Nothingness or God
Which of them seems more unlikely?
Once I would have answered clearly
Now I only think I’m nearly sure
(Chris Judge Smith)