Hector Bidding Wife and Child a Last Good-bye

Soon enough, the gods will keep their nasty

Promise and Achilles’ spear will pierce

His chest. But now, for all its scars

And imperfections, his body is still whole

Beneath his wife’s caress.

It rests

On the floor—his helmet plumed

With a horsehair crest that, in battle,

Shakes wildly and makes him appear

Taller and more fierce than he really is.

Only a moment ago, as he took it off,

It scared his young son,

Who cried in terror

And ran from the room, never to see him again.