In the poem “Autumn Testament” the speaker is walking down the hill to a church to pray in the evening. Initially, he is pleased when the road hurts his bare feet, feeling like he is repenting. On his way, he notices different animals swirling and humming around and how his presence disturbs them during the otherwise quiet night. After kneeling down and praying in the empty church, he makes his way back up again and his contentment quickly turns to despair when he realizes that even more people have arrived at the house. The poem ends with him questioning Jesus to his motives for playing with him.
In the poem “East Coast Journey” the speaker is traveling up the East Coast. After laying down in bed, the speaker is unable to sleep as his thoughts turn to one of the tired old men he saw earlier while frequenting a pub. In the quietness of the bedroom, with only the sounds of the ocean to keep him company, the speaker contemplates that, as men get older, their former urges subside until they crave nothing more than death.
In the poem “Jerusalem Sonnets 1”, the speaker laments that he feels picked on by god. The speaker is greatly bothered by a louse that is nesting in his beard but receives no sympathy from his surroundings. Instead he told that the louse is precious and favored by god. In his annoyance, the speaker prays to god, questioning why god tests him like this and imagines god laughing at his plight.
