ecargo9 Feb 2006

“The Augean Stables,” by Seamus Heaney

My favorite bas-relief: Athene showing
Heracles where to broach the riverbank
With a nod of her high helmet, her staff sunk
In the exact spot, the Alpheus flowing
Out of its course into the deep dung strata
Of King Augeas’ reeking yard and stables.
Sweet dissolutions from the water tables,
Blocked doors and packed floors deluging like gutters…
And it was there in Olympia, down among green willows,
The lustral wash and run of river shallows,
That we heard of Sean Brown’s murder in the grounds
Of Bellaghy G.A.A. Club. And imagined
Hosewater smashing hard back off the asphalt
In the car park where his athlete’s blood ran cold.