Wrong Refrains

By Cliff Lake

 

Wrong Refrains

 

Yellowed scores and choppy sound bites,

Singing half-facts almost in tune.

The production in fuzzy focus,

The players masked in smiles foul,

The lyrics slide from mouths unmatching.

The audience stirs restless and uneasy,

Emotions played in strident tones.

What music is this?

What orchestration discordant?

What demon conducts unseen?

The melody lurches on

Now loudly blared,

Now playing muffled,

Now whispered from everywhere.

False tuning felt in the skin,

The stories told twisted,

Tortured,

Tangled,

Resonant with deception.

Who will sing with the clarity required?

Who will trumpet truth?

Integrity rings as a bell,

It cannot be mistaken in the cacophony,

But cuts through with exactitude.

Listen for those silvered tones unmistakable,

Facts laid bare and unanswerable,

And let your heart ease.

 

Cliff Lake 6/14/2023

Copyright © Clifford Lake 2023

Location: Dalton, MA, USA

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