"Oh, Sweet Little Black Goat"

"Oh, Sweet Little Black Goat"

From crystal skies above,

The Great Mother breathed new life—

A bundle of warm fleece and tiny cloven hooves,

Carried six long moons beneath Her gentle heart.

Oh...

The guilt is yours to bear.

Six days had passed.

She licked his coat as black as midnight,

Then the Great Mother turned for home,

Leaving her child in the hands of humankind.

Oh...

The guilt is yours to bear.

No sooner had he found his fragile feet

Than hopeful people gathered near.

With quiet, indifferent hands

They stroked the child, yet never met his eyes.

Oh...

The guilt is yours to bear.

Those smooth-skinned keepers

Reached again for the grown beast,

Promising seasons of plenty and care,

While idly playing with antler-thin horns.

Oh...

The guilt is yours to bear.

Oh great evil! Oh dreadful Black Goat!

Six reasons to hate—they wrote them all for him.

A sacred creature, starved and worn,

Bound in rusted chains far from his Mother's land.

Oh...

The guilt is yours to bear.

Six thousand years have passed,

As damp earth swallowed decaying flesh.

Do not beg the Great Mother for forgiveness—

Beyond the grave there waits no kingdom... only silence.

Oh...

The guilt is yours to bear.