I saw the devil standing in front of Lilac One
with the dawn across his shoulders
and his shirt cuffs undone
He said, "Why are you waiting, and who waits for you?"
then the dawn turned to diamonds
of peculiar blue.
The devil is lonely though he prowls Lilac Two
and his heart is a magpie
in a mirror that flew
with itself to itself in a blur of time spent
in evening's cold courtyard
by feigned accident.
The devil said, "Nothing can mar Lilac Three
though tomorrow's black roses
are vased there for thee."
Then he shook his hair out like leaving a love
that he's carefully carved--
that's a lot to think of.
________
shared to Dverse OLN.
"the dawn turned to diamonds
ReplyDeleteof peculiar blue" - you should be so lazy so often! Beautiful line and cool poem!
A poem to revel in. Just exquisite, Shay, like "diamonds of peculiar blue." Like a ballad of love, love lost, love attempted, love abandoned ... all mysteriously gothic, shrouded in a deceptive mist, leaving you wondering. Whatever the devil promises, after all, it can never be enough, but on the other hand, gives you "a lot to think of." Lilacs 1, 2, 3: the devil playing Pygmalion? But creation's somethings he's never good at. Just marring it.
ReplyDeleteI love your effortless rhyme, Shay, you manage it every time! I like how you humanise the devil here, how he's still capable of love in his own twisted way, though he can't help messing up. I enjoyed the second stanza especially :-)
ReplyDeleteAwesome read.
ReplyDeleteThis is gorgeous Shay. The rhyme and meter are flawless and the language dark as the devil's eye. There is a sense of dreamscape and the inner world that pervades each image, taking the reader from the normal to the archetypal and extraordinary. Too many fine lines to quote, but I especially like the opening and closing ones. Just splendid stuff.
ReplyDeleteI certainly each of the preceding comments! Will add that the labels you create are as creative as the poetry you conjure. Go Cards.
ReplyDeleteLeft out ' agree with' ....duh.
DeleteThis is captivating Shay. It reads with momentum, once in step it is effortless to read — and each closing line of rhyme sparks with fascination, as if the preceding lines unlocked an enchanting change of thought. Wonderfully shaded in beautiful darkness.
ReplyDeleteI second everything that everyone else has spoken here Shay! You always make poetry a delight to read and sip on like an expensive wine. Simply amazing writing my friend!
ReplyDeleteBeautifully written specially the first stanza with: dawn turned to diamonds of peculiar blue.
ReplyDelete