Jul 23, 2015

[Poem] Incendiary Accolades

Once upon a time I laughed
Once upon a time I cheered
Once upon a time I crashed
now it's Once upon a time I fear

In another time I was perfect

I did what was right all day and night
the might of the light was bright, it felt right
to smite the blight in glorious fight

Accolades achieved were abundant

failure a thought most repugnant
if a friend was on fire then I'd douse them
if a friend was alone then I'd house them
if a friend became upset, assuriedly I'd help them

But time has a way

a way to make fools of all
and time has a way
of surprising you with the fall

nobody saw and nobody cared

nobody noticed when the fire flared
the weight of the accolades was a clever foe
it attacked in a way you'd never know

being adorned then admonished

being all knowing then astonished
it's a torque on the mind
a weapon best left unharnessed

being expected to be perfect, covered in brass

layers of medals so thick they never heard the crash
my suit stood alone, though inside I burned
the face they loved held, but the mind behind it churned

naught but a shell, melting metal of medals and accolades

a circle of badges, once wreathed in fire
becomes a new forged shackle
transformed in the pyre

They leaned on me still, thought I held up the world

as my incendiary accolades slowly unfurled
They still see me standing now
never knowing I crashed

Deep in my new prison, the fire slowly dies

Deep in my sorrow, my once great strength defied
I wish they could hear me, now that I finally learned to cry
I wish they knew the tenderness inside

They'll never know

They can't ever see
Because no light can shine
Through the incendiary accolades around me

Years will pass, it will become once upon a time

With nothing to hold them, my medals won't shine
one by one, I know they will fall
one by one, the shell will seem to crawl

people will wonder, will stop and ask

people will question why I dropped all my brass
They'll finally see that something is wrong
but it's been too late for far too long

Yes, it's once upon a time I fear

because it's now I need them, I need them near
because when today becomes once upon a time
they'll crack open the shell and find nothing in here.

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