"The Story of the Cross"

At the end of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the good Gawain approaches the Green Chapel, where he is certain he must die. A grindstone hums nearby. As far as Gawain knows, it’s sharpening the ax that will shear off his head. “I’ll be with you right away,” calls the demonic Green Knight from behind the chapel. That chapel is a place of foreboding. …