Life is inherently difficult. It is its cornerstone
Awakened, striving to tie up all wear and tears
Respect you've given, the kindness you've shown
Will still offer me vigor and be my exulting gear?
Awakened, striving to tie up all wear and tears
To be truly human, fully conscious, and awake
Will still offer me vigor and be my exulting gear?
Feud grew fray, brother with brother, and no spake.
To be truly human, fully conscious, and awake
Oblivious to what Dramatis personae uttered;
Feud grew fray, brother with brother, and no spake
Will be thrown out of the nest in a steady world?
Oblivious to what Dramatis personae uttered;
Must live each time, as if it were at the beginning
Will be thrown out of the nest in a steady world?
Facing life head-on lessens our ought-clinging.
Must live each time, as if it were at the beginning
Respect you've given, the kindness you've shown
Facing life head-on lessens our ought-clinging
Life is inherently difficult. It is its cornerstone.
Written: December 08, 2022
2022 Poetry Marathon Mile 22 Poetry Contest
Sponsored by: Mark Toney
Dramatis Personae
Adam: A Man – First to come, Last to know
Eve: A Woman – Innocent Temptation, Supple Adamant, Persistent Inconsistency
The Serpent: Being in and of the Human Condition, The Serpent appears, as is his wont, at our want and always in appropriate guise
Act 0, Scene –III : The Mind of Everyman
There lurks within the recesses of the human psyche the price we pay for the Gift of Awareness – Doubt. Before Doubt lies – The Serpent (an artifact of awareness) – shifting, undulating, appealing and repulsive, guarding Doubt, concealing, yet by its very presence … confirming Doubt’s existence.
THE SERPENT
Fundamental - Primal - Want
Slipping, Sliding, Slow, Savant
Turning back upon Himself
Insinuating with His stealth
His vulgar touch
His sensuous feel
His warm embrace
His dark appeal
The innate joy with which He takes
The innocence of one mistake
And when He’s done
You’re all alone
The warmth is gone
You’re on your own
You look around … but then you find
The Serpent’s there
Inside your mind
Labyrinthia P. Babineaux …………… The White Witch of the Lower 9th Ward
Papa Babineaux …………………………… The Father, an honest apothecary
Algebra Babineaux ……………………… The even-tempered Mother
Bumblebee Babineaux ………………… The precocious younger Sister
Gnat Babineaux …………………………… The curious little Brother
Cabernet Babineaux …………………… The distant Cousin
Ulysses “Zully” Kowolski ……………… The world-weary Sailorman
Nikita Something ………………………… The learned Creole Seer
Mitchell Hollywood ………………………. The adulterous Inn Keeper
Tom Sickley …………………………………… The disingenuous Feather Merchant
Fr. Marcus Paternoster ……………...... The lecherous Clergyman
Steve Merkin ………………………………… The unscrupulous Accountant
Vince Fettish ………………………………… The nefarious Fantasy Man
Xerxes the Great …………………………… The Emperor of Persia and Media
Dante Foolhardy …………………………... The Stultifying Court Jester
John Travailleur, Esq. …………………… Just another John
Plus … townspeople, pirates, Indians, street musicians and beggars, Cajuns, swamp rats, women, young ladies, and girls.
The Prairie dogging contra versies Oh, the queen of dramaturge absurd this stick stinking stirrer A interdiction of artless showmanship Dramatis personae that’s pure over acting bull in a glass house better left in an outhouse