January 4th, 2010
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An ancient church
complete with two bell towers
and a large nave;
the outside walls have corroded
and are covered with
an aeon’s worth of spider webs
and long dead ashen moss
giving the appearance of
stringy coral;
surrounding the church
are smooth short tombstones
black onyx that extends
as far as the eye can see;
the sky above –
a drab haze charcoal
yet when one looks
at just the right angle
one can see
the church still glows
a white aura.
With a grudge against his family
a mentally troubled man stands
and is judged by the people
who fear they see in his dark soul
a shadow of themselves.
An ancient man
with a large smooth head
whose eyes have disappeared
as his skin has grown over them
wears a ruff made of stone
and a gold ring in one ear;
his face cracks.
Withering criticism faces
an equally hash response
ignorant and totally misleading.
In an empty battlefield
from yesteryear
near a place
where unnamed boy soldiers
were buried en masse
a vision appears
of baby faces
amidst bones and shrapnel
a sad face warns us
and begs us
for a future
it can’t have.
A large-scale military exercise
coincides with
a deadline to a counter-offer;
a commander of ground forces
challenges nations to decide
to swap blood, sweat
and uranium tears.
– matt at shadow of iris
November 19th, 2009
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A mouse moving under the carpet
a small lump, cartoonish
a white mouse in a cage
always safe, well fed
but always restless
it sticks its nose between the bars
and rubs
till its nose is sore and red, even scarred
it gnaws on the bars of the cage
a grating sound
that won’t let you rest
until finally
not being able to bear it anymore
you take it out to the woods
and let it go …
Second thoughts overwhelm you
guilt
a white mouse against red leaves
a sore thumb
snake fodder
you reach out to grab it
because even if
you can’t let it live
you can’t let it die
but even as you move to snatch it up
it’s faster than your hands
and quickly gone
the deed done.
You’ve stepped out of time
into a small dark chamber
stony walls and dark shades
of fluorescent violet and green
time flows onwards
but only outside the cave
never within
you can watch friends, family, life
moving forward
leaving you behind
all through a misty door –
do you step through
back into time?
Or do you stay there forever
and watch?
Far, far away
in a passage through a cave
or on a trail through a dark section of woods
you spy an eerie wavering light
you halt
you are not alone
behind you stands an old guardian
a harsh face and an old stony voice
he promises you safety, honor
but only if you slay
the shadowy figure out in front
yet the shadow’s voice is soothing
and it beckons you forward
towards the shimmering light
with promises of flesh and power.
You are in a restaurant
clean, cool, and spiffy
you’ve order coffee
you sit with one friend
and another has gone to use the rest room
the drinks arrive
hot steaming drinks, one milky green tea
reaching for yours
you clumsily spill sugar on the table
you scoop some up
and place it in your absent friend’s cup
thinking it’ll flavor his tea
but your friend who is present asks
“why are you putting poison in his cup?”
– matt at shadow of iris
