Dust Devils
by Tony Noland
'neath the boots of the mighty, 'neath the shoes of the proud,
'neath the soles of the flighty, 'neath the heels of the loud,
The dust devils lurk and they work darkling magic,
The truths and the lies in admixtures so tragic.
'neath the soles of the flighty, 'neath the heels of the loud,
The dust devils lurk and they work darkling magic,
The truths and the lies in admixtures so tragic.
A step made too slow so the child lies a'bleeding;
A stride made too long so the lover cries, bleating.
Fate has ordained every step in your course
But the dust devils twist you, turn fine into coarse.
Fortunes are lost, wealth bestowed on another,
One minor false step and all hopes die a'smother.
A little bit slower, a little bit faster
One step is the difference 'twixt love and disaster.
Chaos and anger, hatred and fright
The drunkard's walk taken is a devil's delight.
'neath the boots of the mighty, 'neath the shoes of the proud,
'neath the soles of the flighty, 'neath the heels of the loud,
The dust devils lurk and they work darkling magic,
The truths and the lies in admixtures so tragic.
===== Feel free to comment on this or any other post.
I imagine this getting sung at the more religious alternative school to Hogwarts.
ReplyDelete"Chaos and anger, hatred and fright
ReplyDeleteThe drunkard's walk taken is a devil's delight."
I love these lines. Actually, I love it all. Not so much flash fiction as flash poetry, but who cares when it delights like this. The main section reads a bit like Betjeman, with its rhythm and perfect scanning.
Thanks.
Love the bit about the drunkard's walk, and the shape of the poem is a bit twisty too! Nice.
ReplyDeleteNicely done, Tony! We don't see much FridayFlash poetry, and this was a cool change of pace. I'm well aware of those dust devils and how they can trip you up....
ReplyDeleteAw this was just ace. A bit different for you but it totally works.
ReplyDeleteI have a strange compulsion to vacuum & dust now... ;-) In all seriousness, I thought this was great! Nice rhythm to it; I felt as if I were being whirled around. Nice job!
ReplyDeleteAmazing. It has the rhythm of those old, creepy English poems, like early 19th century school boys used to recite to improve their dictation. Super creepy!
ReplyDeleteJohn - if I were a wizard, I bet I'd start off in Ravenclaw, then get kicked down to Hufflepuff in second year.
ReplyDeleteFlyingscribbler - thank you! Betjeman's Wikipedia page says he described himself as a "poet and hack". We must be twins!
Cathy - a drunkard's walk, indeed! 8-)
Larry - I'm pretty sure the #FridayFlash overlords would insist on prose, but this has been a pretty strange week for me.
Icy - the day I fail to surprise and delight is the day I hang up my pen. (Well... I'll settle for just "surprise".)
Elizabeth - turn and turn and turn about!
Bev - I loved Poe's creepy poems. This wasn't consciously modeled on him, but now that you mention it, I can see the influence!
It's - you've placed a beat in my head now. I read this earlier today and the beat is still there. I thought maybe once I finally commented...but nope.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure what magic this is, but I'm hoping if I go outside and turn around three times, then spit, I'll be free!
And if you read it aloud three times, I jump out of your mirror.
Delete8-)
Nothing that am exterminator couldn't deal with, in less than poetic manner admittedly!
ReplyDeletemarc nash
It does read like a song! A little twisted, creepy, choir song.
ReplyDeleteI love a bit of poetry late at night. It puts my thoughts in order I suppose :) Thanks Tony!