I wasn't going to do it this way. I've already spoken out, and Mystic handled it with such power and grace. I wanted to do something frivolous, magical, enigmatic . . .
I thought it might be fun to find a phrase to start each of 13 haiku to employ our baker's dozen words. So I went to page 56 of my old paperback copy of Charles deLint's short story collection The Ivory And The Horn, and in the story "The Forest Is Crying" found this sentence. "So he only had two images of them: down and out, or dressed in khaki, carrying an assault rifle."
Then the wordle words cried out to me. So I cooperated with the inevitable. And now I am crying.
Reflections at Sandy Hook
An assault rifle
Quickest way to top off
Your list of victims
An assault rifle
speaks. Now no way to lighten
Grief for those families
An assault rifle
Brings to visibility
A madman's sickness
An assault rifle
Speaks. Nothing to listen to
But report and screams
An assault rifle
Blast signalling the end of
An innocent life
An assault rifle
Slicks the corridors with pools
Of innocent blood
An assault rifle
Leaves no time for a gentle
Sigh - just violent death
An assault rifle
Speaks death. Responder rushes
To the scene . . . Too late
An assault rifle
Scratches at the psychopath's
Wild murderous itch
An assault rifle
Left no doubt about how the
event unfolded
An assault rifle
Reflected in the glassy
Stare of madman's eyes
An assault rifle
Pierces a milky tableau
Leaving children dead
An assault rifle
And predictably we have
One more tragic end
Thank you for visiting my non-story verse.
ReplyDeleteMy tears are added to the collective.
Tragic-my heart is heavy over this senseless act. Someone must of seen it coming, surely they must have. Thanks for sharing this.
ReplyDeletePamela
p.s. love your prelude to the comments, there is far too much "snark" from some folks out there.
Wow, really powerful use of the words. The whole world is crying for the victims and their families.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind words on my blog. And thanks for the correction, english is not my first language, so these mistakes slip in sometimes :-)
The powerful use of repetition drills home the message unequivocally. The way you have constructed this shows the sincerity of your grief and invites us to share.
ReplyDeletePredictably...is right.
ReplyDeleteThank you for visiting the Dept. and adding your comments. You have been missed!
Your poem really brings the message home. Very powerful. Thank you for sharing it.
ReplyDeletewell handled. I have to be honest, I'm not really ready for all these 'wordles' about the Sandy Hook tragedy - it seems a bit tasteless to be writing odes to dead children and psychopaths, but...that's just my opinion. that said, I think you did a better job than most. thanks.
ReplyDeleteThanks, all.
ReplyDeleteMama P -
It's not a matter of taste. It's grief, coping and catharsis. It wasn't hyperbole when I said I was crying.
And this collection of words almost defies any joyful interpretation.
This was not what I intended to do, but it almost seems predestined.
JzB
Thank you for visiting my blog. I can find no "light-hearted banter" in response to your writing. I am riddled and can easily understand why you are crying,
ReplyDeleteElizabeth