They tell me, "The world is a sewer."
That's not entirely a lie.
We're all just leaves and water droplets
clinging to the gutter,
and most of us will end up
falling in the downspout, anyway.
They tell me, "It's eat, or be eaten."
So many are 'eaten,'
so many never look up -
so many never see the stars -
because they're too busy eating,
but are somehow oblivious to the fact
that they're being eaten
at the same time.
We have to fight for breath
in this infestation of our world -
but what if
you could simply float?
That's how the Greeks must have done it,
flying up to the top, where the air is clear,
and flitting from star to star
until they name every one,
knew every one,
made history.
I can see the stars
but to make my own constellations
all I need to do
is hold up my tracing paper
and connect the dots.
Author notes
Prompt:
"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars."
— Oscar Wilde
Title ideas welcome.
A contest entry
- FOR anyone who loves QUOTES/PICS inspired by badnovocaine.
900 points, ended January 2, 22 entries
Silver trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
What did you think?
Comments
-
Nicely done. Congrats on the silver.
-
Oh my! I loved this, and I can definently see this write has a personality all on its own.
I loved it.
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