Vivisepulture

  Hats were held against hearts whilst strangers watched the man in rags dump shovels of dirt into a hole carrying a casket. The entire little town could hear thump after thump as the man's fragile bones buried the deceased. There were some who stopped, wanting to offer their help as the man would bring the shovel down on the casket rather than letting the soil fall. Their hearts though, unsure if they could handle such an idea, would fall to a pit as they turned away. What this village's ears couldn't hear was the thrashing that was muted by the sound of impacting dirt followed by a warning of a dropped shovel.