(for Angela, enslaved, Jamestown, Virginia, 1619)
is simply a young slave
on a plantation allowed
to take a morning to dig
a hole in a far-off corner
away from the graveyard
big enough and deep enough
to bury a Black body
not out of respect for life
but to prevent disease
and cut the stench
and if a cross is laid on
the mound of dirt
Black body shrouded
Black body interred
unboxed, finally at rest
and if a cross is permitted
it weathers with
sun and rain and years
acquires a silvery-gray
patina, splinters, warps
decomposes and leaves
an unmarked grave