Saint Sebastian

"Thy foes encircle thee and watch with gleeful laughter
And bended bow.
Thy foes encircle thee and watch with gleeful laughter
Thy torments slow.

The embers burn, and gentle is the arrow's stinging
'Neath the evening sky.
The embers burn, and gentle is the arrow's stinging
When the end draws nigh.

Why hastens not thy dream unto thy lips now pallid
With deadly drouth?
Why hastens not thy dream unto thy lips now pallid
To kiss thy mouth?"

— Valery Yaklovich Bryusov