He Survived
An ekphrastic interpretation: Winter Landscape by Caspar David Friedrich
He Survived
Crutches akimbo,
crucifix, and boy
staring at the cross
Hint of a Gothic church
looming
This grave is old
the tree has grown up
The boy struggled
through polio
faced off death
Survived.
Changed,
he contemplates
the alternative
This pairing, picture and poem, is haunting and uplifting.