I met Death at the park today
He sat on a bench
and watched the children
as they stumbled through their existence

His black cloak puddled around him,
enveloping his body
He sat next to no one,
and no one seemed to notice him there

His face was a shadowed by his hood
but what I noticed,
staring at him on that bench,
was that he seemed lonely

I sat next to Death,
and he did not object
“Lovely day,” he commented,
and I had to agree

Death does not go anywhere
without an objective
Though it made my heart sink,
I had to ask who would be next

He pointed to a child
who was a beautiful life
She had hair red as copper,
and constellations on her face

Though I knew nothing could be done,
I had to ask why
Why he wanted a child so sweet
to vanish off this Earth

He did not turn towards me
When he spoke his voice was amused,
but laced with sadness as he said
“everyone asks why”

Death left me on the bench
and strode to the girl
She stared at him,
nothing but confusion on her face

He crouched down to her level
in a gesture so comforting
that she almost smiled
and listened to his words

I could not hear what Death had to say
but when he offered his hand to the girl,
she took it
and let him lead her away

They both passed me
on Death’s bench
I could no longer hear either of them,
but the girl was smiling

And so I was alone
with only my thoughts,
wondering if Death treated everyone he encountered
like an innocent child