Headed For the Gristmill

Yesterday’s sweet corn
     now rests among the shucked,
          where norms’ victims lay.

Side-by-side in rusty silos,
     awaiting the gristmill;
          dull substance feeds the masses.

Look at us, Mr. Kipling.
     What became of “The Man Who Would Be King”?
          Laugh at us.

Anesthetized aspirations 
     embalmed by mediocrity,
          hacks without hopes rest in a garden of low expectations. 

Individuality sacrificed,
     we are the dull fruit
          carried in coffins created by conformity.

What is left to feed the next generation,
     but the seeds of monotony
          without a kernel of creativity?




*May 26, 2018

Copyright © | Year Posted 2018



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Date: 6/22/2018 9:05:00 AM
BRILLIANT...SIMPLY BRILLIANT, Carolyn. Many congrats on your win. Elaine
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Date: 6/22/2018 6:45:00 AM
Congratulations on your win with this most awesome poem!
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Date: 6/19/2018 6:43:00 AM
Congrats on your win Carolyn..
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Date: 6/18/2018 9:24:00 PM
Back with congratulations Carolyn. Tom.
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Date: 5/31/2018 8:35:00 AM
Great take on the theme Carolyn...best of luck my friend...love and light...^WW^
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Date: 5/30/2018 3:47:00 PM
Carolyn, i need to tell you, how wonderful it is to read and see you back here on soup, again, and thanks for you comments on my poems, just like the old days...Your poem is amazing, the 4th stanza just blew me away..i don't get around much on soup now-a-days, but to read poetry of this standard makes my day..thank you, you are a gem...
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Date: 5/30/2018 8:59:00 AM
Amazing metophor. Exceptional writing.
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Date: 5/29/2018 7:16:00 PM
BRILLIANT free verse, Carolyn. My pick for first placement. This goes to my favs. Sincerely, Elaine
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Date: 5/29/2018 6:53:00 PM
this is FANTASTIC, Carolyn. I love the way you took it, not literally but figuratively. Wish I had thought of it. Wait till you see mine. I can be sure nobody did one like mine anyway.
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Date: 5/29/2018 6:53:00 PM
fave.
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Date: 5/29/2018 3:19:00 PM
a very creative write, I like where you took this contest too. I wish you luck, Carolyn,
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Date: 5/28/2018 8:54:00 AM
A very creative approach to the subject, Carolyn, nicely done. I think everyone has approached it differently. Best of luck. John
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Date: 5/27/2018 3:22:00 PM
I love your excellent creativity, Carolyn. All you had to work on was a single word, and yet you were able to come out with such suggestive thoughts. Love & hugs // paul
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Devonshire Avatar
Carolyn Devonshire
Date: 5/29/2018 5:21:00 PM
Sometimes a poem comes to us immediately, Paul. This was my first thought upon reading the contest description. Thank you for your kindness. Love, Carolyn
Date: 5/27/2018 12:48:00 PM
Hi Carolyn, What a interesting take on the contest theme. Good lyrics and content. I wish you the best of luck in the contest:-)
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Date: 5/27/2018 7:40:00 AM
Well written lyric Carolyn, with a thought provoking message, not gruesome like mine lol. Good luck in the contest. Tom.
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Date: 5/26/2018 10:35:00 PM
An apt analogy to the king, who found himself in a gristmill of sorts...Very well penned Carolyn
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Date: 5/26/2018 6:38:00 PM
We'd be lucky if we have that kernel...You've described the most probable outcome of our existence...All the best Carolyn
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Carolyn Devonshire
Date: 5/29/2018 4:48:00 PM
Young people today seem to conform less than the older generations. Maybe there is hope. Thanks, Arturo!
Date: 5/26/2018 4:11:00 PM
You make a valid point through your poem... This is great poetry..
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Carolyn Devonshire
Date: 5/26/2018 4:37:00 PM
It seems we sacrifice a bit of our own individuality each time we concede to the expectations of others. Thank you for reading.
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