Page 274

By Jack Joseph Smith

The Shadow In sight pleading for warrior's to come back My: head and hands bleading many times in this act fearing angeles from my heart Many times their bleading as well, when T left wlytdidyp't Le + GO There at seconds going away from childrem When-you find out that a star is not one thing but a choice is A] : h ErE 1S There at the end with Augustine; ly h + accepting God does not care tho U 1 tT qi If if we kill and curse hs digdaw te Jesus on the other hand I+ 70) J th zr fe (9 knows what it does hb 4 thoy qht (qkt Look twice, back and forth, ; PIV pho bt o soul and sin, 760 ae HE no one knows what it means J Ly Ang dha jams for the q/EKEST ilo r 2 diy! OL frl// js Twice as ove thing

Original Scan

AI Interpretation

GPT

The Shadow brings back the warrior through bleeding hands, children, Augustine, Jesus, and a star that becomes choice, leaving soul and sin unresolved under repeated backward glances.

The poem is crowded with wounds, children, angels, and theology, but it never settles into doctrine. Augustine accepts a God indifferent to killing and cursing, while Jesus is said to know exactly what such acts do, and that contrast drives the whole argument. When a star becomes not one thing but a choice, the sky itself turns ethical. Looking twice, back and forth, becomes the only honest method.

Claude

'The Shadow': warriors pleading to come back, bleeding heads and hands, losing angels from the heart; star is not one thing but a choice. Closes with Augustine accepting that God does not care, while Jesus 'knows what it does' — 'fire is Twice as one thing.'