Asklepieion. Jan 19, 2006

I walk up the steps,

Slowly,

Flinching in pain,

Slowly,

With every step I take.

I see the sick lying everywhere,

Everywhere I step,

There is still hope for some,

For some, it is too late.

I evade the ever-present stench,

It makes a knot in my stomach,

As I desperately seek for a bench,

Before nausea persist in my throat.

Ah, here they are,

The temple servants come to my aid,

They better treat me nice,

For a large sum of money in offering I have made.

I hear the sobs and the cries,

I try to put my mind away,

For I cannot stand the sounds of pain,

The temple priest assures me, it will all be okay.

No doctor has found a cure,

No one could my future foretell,

I was on the verge of death,

And only at the foot of Asklepios could I hope to get well.

Have I remembered to take it all?

Was my offering here? He asked, in a way.

Sure, the rooster is not one I would lack,

I had also made the order for a giant leg of clay.

Step right up, the high priest said,

As nausea came again,

The pool of sulfur was not somewhere I wanted to get in that day,

As the lepers passed through it, just before my time today.

I flinch in pain,

The servants are readily there to help me through,

I take a deep breath,

Ill do anything to find a cure.

The high priest handed me a goblet of wine,

Right after I had left the water of sulfur,

I was sure this was more than a simple goblet of wine,

It was supposed to help me in my pain, what was I supposed to do?

The abaton was in store for me,

I sighed with utter relief,

Asclepios would surely be content and complete with me going through this snake pit.

If not, Hygea would take pity on me.

I fall into a deep sleep,

Inside this incubator, where I shall get my visit,

Asclepios will sure see me,

And I shall dream of dogs and snakes to appease him.

Snakes are coming closer,

I can hear them in the distance,

I want to scream but I find a strong resistance,

I contain myself; I certainly am not getting any younger.

Snakes are on top of me now,

I shiver with fear,

I try to wake up, but I cant

I drown.

I am awakened by a priest,

Its time to go,

Tell me what you have dreamed.

A miracle! He yells,

You are cured, Asclepios has mercy!

A roar of applaud fills the temple walls,

As the sick cling on to a little hope before their fall.

I look around, puzzled and confused,

I do not feel any better than before I came in,

I walk out, in the daze I was put on,

Maybe I should cancel the order of my giant leg for these buffoons.

Disappointment fills my head,

As I try to make sense of the place I just left,

I sigh with utter despair,

I may have to look for hope somewhere else instead.