Inspired by Bruce Dickinson song Darkside of Aquarius
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On the wings of the first hellrider rode venom —
so copious it stained sky and moonlight,
making mothers bolt their doors
against the eastern warmonger's hot gust.
From molten rock and flaming seas the second rode,
hawking evil wares; his tongue a forge of lies,
spinning promises, seeding secret agents
to rule and mislead in every land.
The third came as a preacher of war ~
turning brothers on brothers, sisters on sisters,
tilling the soil with blood to make it ready
for the fourth — who carved theology into terror.
I tried to run — my feet sunk in wet clay.
Then a lone silver surfer appeared:
from starlit sky or silver sea I could not tell;
he drew me from the mire, breathed strength into my arms.
I vowed to reinvent the wheel:
let fascists taste their own venom, feed their children poisons they brewed,
slay kin with the swords they bloodied.
Death will kiss them in their sleep.
Catherine yawned today
made no mention of the prix
she had to pay
Love is a cussing word
She did the best she could
Gonna reinvent the wheel
The swallow always knows
and the doughty willow
fades to grey
And how heaven bestows
whispers to her flock
but we turn ourselves
into vessels of hope
I’m unsure in what I write, whether subject matter or product
Are the words I put to page worthy of being a construct?
Am I saying something worth saying, worth making
Worth reading, worth saving, worth the work slaving
Day in and day out when the payout is a tracing
Of a thought that’s been drawn to its conclusion since the dawn of creation
Let’s face it, I can’t reinvent the wheel, but is it okay if I just express how I feel?
I know the answer’s yes, but that’s evident
It’s less about knowing it, it’s more about accepting it
I always expect more of me, why write formally
When its quality soon becomes the precedent
Maybe it would be better if I put myself under less pressure
Maybe it would be better if I didn’t give it my best effort and just let it out
The umbrella deploys on the morning beach
A device designed for our protection
A matter of natural selection for safety
To shade us from the nasty sun
And other things coming in from space
When the meteors came without warning
Perhaps they were comets or giant asteroids
In any event they were a nuisance
An annoyance we could not avoid
Some were as big as a school bus
But without the children or yellow
Closing in fast on us
Blotting out the sun for fun
Coming in for a crash landing
A sudden stop compliments of Earth
It turns out that umbrellas have limitations
They don't stop rocks from outer space
It is not their job
Some millions of years from now
When humans and dinosaurs reappear
Someone might reinvent the wheel
And perhaps an umbrella that works
So we don't continue to disappear
From The Other Side
by Rick Rucker
I was talking to a friend, 'bout things that I've tried,
Then he surprised me, said to try the other side!
I asked what he meant, how can I do that?
He asked me if the World is flat!
"Of course not, I've seen pictures from Space!"
With that, a smile spread 'cross his face!
Likely thousands of years, everyone thought the same,
The World is flat, the name of their game!
Because everyone thinks it, won't make it true,
Find a better way to do things, a way that works for you!
We are often scolded to not try to reinvent the wheel,
Why not, if you have a better design, you feel?
Most all inventors that design something that ROCKS,
Did it by thinking outside the box!
Or, unlike the sheep mentality my friend decried,
Look at a problem From The Other Side!
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