HANGMAN

On a dirty street, in a western town back in time, the gallows,

He is the hangman, stands always still as the shadows drift with time.

He is everywhere, face covered always in a mask of darkness,

Not a ruler but he holds the authority to life and death.

A noose hovers, it sways with the wind, waiting for those who sin,

You didn’t just break the law, the ultimate crime lived in your mind.

A life you did take, murder will get you a date with the hangman,

Many years ago when life was hard on the trail, guns an everyday tool,

When a man chooses the wrong road, decisions of criminal deeds will do him in.

The hangman will watch as you climb the stairs, each step you will sweat,

A choice you have made, time to pay, the hangman does have his day.

Keith Garrett