Allegory

By Cliff Lake

 

Allegory

 

The allegory flew over the bleak land,

Crying its message.

The stink of failed promise,

Of betrayal and petty puffery assailed it,

But it carried the agenda,

And remained unaffected.

For it was born of need,

It was the vehicle,

And in mockery and exaggeration,

It told the tale and the truth,

And would not be shot from its height

By the ignorant and the unlearned.

The allegory spoke against greed and

And the clowning hammer wielded,

And though it seemed strident to some,

It called to the hidden strength:

A groundswell of the trod upon,

Ordinaries tired of the foolish games

Played on them and opposing them.

Games played in high places,

Using these average as pieces and prizes,

Where the rules are written on the run,

And then not followed at all.

The allegory saw all this and spoke loud,

Flying along the wires,

Gliding the beams,

Landing where it may,

Invited or no.

It told its tale through necessity,

Were the address to fall on deaf ear,

It had done its part in the telling,

Hearing and understanding

Are their own responsibility.

The allegory flew above a bleak land,

Hoping to be heard,

That it need not fly again,

Not for a time at least…

Not for some time.

 

Cliff Lake 3/2/2025

Copyright © Clifford Lake 2025

Location: Wichita, KS, USA

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