Brokentown

By Cliff Lake

 

Brokentown

 

They would not speak of the Great Horror,

So many years since have passed.

They do not speak of the Tragedy,

Too fresh in the mind; the die is cast.

They do not speak of the children lost,

Nor speak of their shared crime.

They daily will ever count the cost,

A broken town from a broken time.

I chanced there once, a petty thief,

I thought to be passing through –

But Fate’s smile has hidden teeth,

And Karma’s Wheel can roll over you.

And though my sins were petty,

They were of a myriad score,

And I came there all unready,

Stepping full through Twilight’s door.

The man at the counter bid me well,

But his eyes wished me away.

The tense of his neck

Spoke what he would not tell,

I feel his glare crawl my back to this day.

These streets seemed teeming and empty both,

Citizens passed with their eyes cast down.

Yet others seemed more excessively bold,

Full glares with sharp teeth beneath a frown.

Night arrived on swift silent wing,

But I felt no need to repose,

Slowly surrounded by people-things,

I stood frozen as the circle closed.

“We shall name your sins forevermore,

Reprieve for you shall be none.

Know now what thee now has in store:

Shackled with us until Time is done.”

Feeling faint, Fate’s fang bit deep,

Then waking bewildered in bracing air,

When at last I woke from swooning sleep:

Empty desert, and a town not there.

In that morn I woke but feet from my car,

Life meaning more than what it once seemed.

My muscles reminded I had traveled far,

To learn lessons in fever-dream.

 

Cliff Lake 8/15/2024

Copyright © Clifford Lake 2024

Location: Wichita, KS, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

One Thousand Horsemen

By Cliff Lake
  One Thousand Horsemen   The call of an ally, A friend of old: “We ask your aid! Will you be bold?”   “Ancient terrors, Assail once more! Will you honor The oaths we swore?”   One thousand horsemen answer the call,   One thousand horsemen riding tall. One thousand horsemen, they prepare. One thousand horsemen, forth they fare.   “We have no word, Are we not heard? Are we forgot? Do you come not?”   “The terror hails, Our people quail! We are beset, Will you come yet?”   One thousand horsemen upon the hill, One thousand horsemen, duty they fill. One thousand horsemen make the climb. One thousand horsemen, are they in time?   “What do we hear? Is succor near? Have you arrived? Will we survive?”   “Hail faithful friend! Fear not an end! Our hope has come, Sound the war drum!”   One thousand horsemen, banners raised! One thousand horsemen, unafraid! One thousand horsemen, charging in! One thousand ho
Read more

The Edge

By Cliff Lake
  The Edge   Out on the edge… This is where we exist, A precipice, A future unseen and unknowable, An edge we constantly walk. Here on the edge, We step forward blindly, Though we tell ourselves That we have planned well, But the future, Has no regard, For the mere mortal. Walking the edge, We may not see, What falls lie before us, What chasms may claim us, Nor how deeply they lurk. But know this: We have the strength, To climb out of darkness, If we but dare the edge again. Fear not brother! You are your own savior, If you but make the merest try. Do not despair sister! The unlooked-for hand, Will reach for you yet! Remember: From the bottom, The only way is up. Forward is the only motion, Time is allowed, In this frame we inhabit. It is the step to the side, That carries you down, Out here on the edge…   Straight ahead then - The path is before you.   Cliff Lake 2/24/2024 Copyright © Clifford Lake 2
Read more

Used Up 'n Dried Up

By Cliff Lake
  Used Up ‘n Dried Up   You scurried away from your ancestral home, Let’s face it boy, you’re out there on loan. Your markers cashed in, no more favors to call, Winds of change blowing cold, house of cards to fall. Livin’ in a hotel, bumming dollars from the poor, Sellin’ your Chinese trinkets, maybe try it door to door. Your hands in everyone’s pockets, no more spare change for you, Keep on beggin’ at the dockets, that is what’s left to do.   “You’re on your own, kid.” That’s what they said. “You’re used up ‘n dried up; you’re bled.” “You’re out on the street, you’ve used up your cred.” “You’re on your own, kid.” That’s what I said.   Oh, how you fell hard for that dictator, A long-time, well-known master baiter. He always had you pegged as some petty clown, Just look at how he has jerked you around.   “You’re on your own, kid.” That’s what he said. “You’re used up ‘n dried up; you’re bled.” “Look at this crooked path that I led.” “You’re on
Read more