Poetry Forum

Forum Home » High Critique » The Hermit

For poets who want unrestricted constructive criticism. This is NOT a vanity workshop. If you do not want your poem seriously critiqued, do not post here. Constructive criticism only. PLEASE Only Post One Poem a Day!!!

5/16/2017 3:35:21 PM

Kevin Shaw
Posts: 9

The Hermit
Part 1

Beyond Two Sullen Hill, not too far away,
Lives a solitary man, bitter, old and grey.
Known as the Hermit with heart of cold,
His life of unpleasantness is often told.

Many believe you would turn to stone,
If you caught his stare whilst on your own.
Tetchy and crabby for he knows no fun,
Stays in the dark, hidden from the sun.

In a ramshackle barn house, he resides,
Living on his own, to know one he confides.
Children believe stories of a Goblin myth,
Slaying victims at dusk, with a Neolith.

There must be more to this eremite man,
Whose body is frail and eyes are wan.
Believed to be Ninety and eight years more,
Was there a time when his heart was pure?

The Hermit
Part 2

Good morning Sir, how are you this day?
Tell me of your life, and why you live this way.
“I do not welcome strangers, or any one at all,
But, my time is getting near, I await the call.

Hitler took my home in early fourty-one
The house he destroyed, taking wife and son.
My dearest was 23 and young boy only two,
So, left a broken city, what else could I do?

I took a vow of silence and turned to God,
Became a recluse and viewed as very odd.
My life may seem morose and deeply sad,
Thought of as a grouch and slightly mad.

In truth, I must accept the world I see,
I asked nothing of life, it asked nothing of me.
Thank you for listening to my sad lament,
Grateful for your kindness and the time we spent”

Just a few days later the Hermit was gone,
Never had the chance to be someone.
Up on Two Sullen Hill, a stone of Granite cold,
To the Hermit, a posthumous, Heart of Gold

• permalink • reply with quote