Bystanding

We went for lack of something else to do.
We didn’t go to shout at them or mock.
We didn’t harbor cruelty in our hearts.
We’d have some wine and leave by one o’clock.

The suffering looked worse than we had thought.
It startled us at first when darkness came.
We tried to get them wine upon a stick
When we heard someone call Elijah’s name.

An earthquake left the temple curtain rent.
The scribes debated what the whole thing meant.
As these things go, I guess I’m glad I went.
To stand and watch is always time well spent.