The poem describes hard blows in life that seem to come from God's wrath. These blows leave dark furrows in the faces of even the fiercest and strongest. The blows may symbolize the colts of barbaric Attilas or the dark heralds that Death sends. They are deep falls of the soul's Christ or some adorable one that Destiny blasphemes. The blows are bloody and feel like bread burning the man at the oven door. The man turns his crazed eyes and all life's experiences pool like guilt in his gaze.