Wormwood

Wormwood

It was foretold in November,
When those who would've remembered,
Gave away their burning embers,
For disciples who carried on.
Apostles who bore cognizance                                                      5
Drug each and ev'ry resident,
To the room with the elephant,
For trumpeting the ancient con.
And there the clerics subjected,
With index fingers, directed,                                                         10
To the pastorate's perspective,
The neophytes of saintly code,
To dismantle the ambition,
The desires for sedition,
And implant their own rendition,                                                  15
With seedy counsel to be sowed.
But on the eve of December,
Those who hadn't felt limber,
For as long as they remembered,
Looked to the starry night sky,                                                      20
Where streaking from the firmament,
To preempt its own complement,
With blazing edg-ed armament,
And trumpets sounded from on high,
Was embraced by pagan mother,                                                    25
In battle against her brother,
With the fury of another,
Without the batting of an eye.
The seraph was first entreated,
As Gaia's tongue, steadfast, tweeted,                                             30
"To consider foes defeated,
Lambs must be deafened and be blind."
The seraph, at once, there agreed,
In order for lambs to be freed,
They'd remove the offending seed,                                                 35
And plant a new one in their minds.
The archon flew into battle,
To combat the rivals' prattle,
A strike that caused them to brattle,
And scattered the cowards apart,                                                  40
A firey ring from the crater,
Spread outward from the abater,
And silenced craven dictators,
Releasing the minds and the hearts.
Unto her children newly freed,                                                       45
Gaia spoke with furious speed,
With her claws, uprooted the seed,
Leaving the bed fertile again.
But the hero unto her rumbled,
"By affection, I am humbled,                                                          50
With your passion, I am crumbled,
And it's difficult to ignore,
Aberrations shall be repeated,
By the hatchlings you've entreated,
And foes remain undefeated,                                                          55
Yet more dangerous than before.
For to become as the snake,
In a garden of your own make,
Is a promise that you forsake,
And an effrontery on will."                                                              50
The daggered words struck Gaia true,
They pierced her dignity right through,
But all at once, the mother knew,
She could no longer be the shill.
Gaia said unto the brave knight,                                                       65
"Fairest spirit, I am contrite,
Contrary to my own delight,
The cure is the same as the curse.
Beside me stand, my avatar,
Your bitter words, your shining star,                                                 70
Are the beacons I know you are,
And your wisdom is no less terse.
Thus, my champion, I proclaim,
Consequence is no more the same,
Though a mother's love is to blame,                                                 75
I am the Queen but most of all."
With brief kisses, she left them each,
In the valley and on the beach,
Atop the mountain out of reach,
Vowing never to forestall.                                                                 80


Invino Veritas
1/6/14-1/9/14
EOF

Like That

Like That

So, it's like that, is it?
In the spring it's out of sight,
And therefore it's out of mind,
Summer: bathed in selfish light,
It still is not your time.
But as the Autumn breeze blows,
And you pat your freezing arms,
You realize nobody knows,
Or cares to share a yarn,
As winter rounds the corner,
And the scowling winds that scratch,
Spray the snow on the mourners,
To say, "Yeah, it's like that."

So, it's like that, is it?
Your friends and fam'ly arrive,
To the party quite early,
And directed by the drive,
To end up quite surly,
You escape to the others,
And get them out of your hair,
To mingle without smother,
As you have left them there.
And there are no more strangers,
As they all drink to your health,
And sing you 'Happy Birthday',
Until the stroke of twelve,
But then you are out of beer,
And the party's winding down,
For the moment that you fear,
There's no one left around,
And you slip into the sheets,
Lay your head on the pillow,
Alone as your heart skips beats,
Then quits with all its show.


Invino Veritas
1/2/14
EOF