I abhor poetry. To clarify, I consider most poetry a cheap way to garner praise, and far too many poets parasites, leeching away the greatness of the few real poets who still inspire a sense of awe. For poetry - the real thing - has a grace and power to it that prose can rarely match.
Whether the lines below show me to fall into the category of a parasite or of a poet, I do not know. I have never called myself anything other than a hack.
The Lost Boys of Aiden
The boys of Aiden can always be found,
Lurking around the pier.
Or swimming in the Cold Stone Lake,
Without a trace of fear.
But there’s been something in the air,
These past fifteen years,
For on their faces I often see,
A distinct hint of tears.
They pine for a vision of beauty, I heard,
Of a child, an actor,
Who lives with her troupe on a barge,
But often performs here.
Silky-smooth
are her golden tresses,
Her gaze
is crystal-clear,
And when
she smiles, the boys do say,
She is
without peer.
#
The young
men of Aiden can always be found,
Lurking
around the Pier,
Or by the
banks of the Cold Stone Lake,
Selling
wares from far and near.
But when
the day’s work is done,
They sit
with mugs of beer,
And sing
sad songs, like dirges,
All
dedicated to her.
She lives
in the Undercity now,
An
errand-girl for a smuggler,
But on that
face – still sweet, still peerless,
There is no hint of a smear.
There is no hint of a smear.
Fair of
skin and rosy of cheek,
Her gaze, sharp as a spear,
A body
that promises so much,
In gossamer robes,
so sheer.
The old
men of Aiden are often to be found,
Lurking around the piers
Or by the
banks of the Cold Stone Lake,
Drowning
in their tears.
For sons
they have lost, sons who loved,
A woman
for many a year,
An errand-girl
who became a noble,
A mage
without a peer.
Still, she
is lovelier than ever she was,
Tho’ now
love is mixed with fear.
Yet, when
she calls them to arms, they go,
For these
boys still love her.
For who
can resist that hair so golden,
Eyes so
crystal clear?
A voice so
sweet, a face so charming,
Words so full of cheer?
Words so full of cheer?
#
The men of
Aiden can now be found,
Lying upon
their biers,
Or at the
bottom of the Cold Stone lake,
Sullying the water, once so clear.
For they
fought in the streets, on the docks,
Brave
indeed, they were.
They
fought to defend their city,
But even
more, for her.
From Aiden's Palace did she rule them,
So far,
who was once so near,
And I
heard, when she sent them to die,
She shed
copious tears.
Years
pass, and she still lives, though –
Her grief,
I’m told, was sincere,
But I wonder - does
she ever think about them,
Those Lost
Boys of yesteryear?
Wonderful
ReplyDeleteThank you Satyam.
DeleteEnchanting and musical.
ReplyDeleteThank you Bhuvaneshwari, appreciate it.
DeleteExcellent tale, beautifully told... and although I know very little about poetry, i am afraid...I did enjoy this a lot! :) This is fine poetry, me thinks.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Radhika.
DeleteThis is a wonderful ballad (I think it qualifies as a ballad). A tale of the ages, for the ages. Harks back to the Trojan War. Was that an inspiration, I wonder?
ReplyDeleteNow that you mention it, this is definitely a ballad!
DeleteWasn't consciously thinking about the Trojan War, but I think the epics (Western and Indian) are so ingrained in those of us who have read them, that they tend to emerge here and there.
so musical so rhyming , still in my head :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Shilpa.
DeleteBeautifully written, Percy; the one grouse I always had with poetry was that some of it was 'made' needlessly complex and hard to understand. In your case, it is so lyrical and so enjoyable that it brings to mind the simplicity of a Wordsworth. No wonder your prose too has a lyrical quality to it.
ReplyDeleteWas Aiden's queen the same lady who launched a thousand ships? Bears some resemblance but I am not all that certain...
Can never but be flattered by a comparison to His Wordsworthiness.
DeleteWasn't referring to Helen, rather writing this around my own WIP, but I can see where the parallel could be drawn.
Beautiful tale and wonderfully told. Enjoyed it very much Percy. :)
ReplyDelete