Saturday, March 31, 2012

Wheat from Chaff

BORAMMATHEUS: Dreaded liege, thou Lord of Hosts and Kings. I
Seek from you this day your approval. Though
Once I did grace your enemies presence
I do now renounce before the world, that
I, the son of Borammatheus, prince
In title only, lord only to men
Who wear their hearts on their sleeves, kindly men,
Men that have lived long by your code in lands
Held by your enemies, have waited for
Your armies to relieve them; liege of men
That would have me lead them against those same
Foes that did take me in but a year hence;
The foes as did take the life of your friend,
That goodly Saint, who upon my life was
Dearer to me than any helper in
That accursed camp of fiends and vipers,
That monument whom you did uphold, a
Man for all men to imitate in kind;
As men do imitate your own person.
My lord so changed is my heart from disease
As did plague me when last we met that I
Firmly renounce them, I give them over
As chaff for the fire, to be burned in
Everlasting torment and misery.
And though it pains you to kill one men, for
You are a merciful king that would so
Rid the world of vice and sin that all men
Could return to you without punishment,
You know that unless they return with such
Repentance in their hearts that you cannot,
Will not, force them to come hither out of
Shame alone; lest they should not atone, but
Grow devious with mercy undeserved.
Yet know my dreaded king, you who are robed
In Glory and have the wind itself as
Your ally, the mighty seas to purge the
World as is necessary, you who make the
Ground shake and the earth quake in the wake
Of your announcement, that I, but a man
Among men, am thine! For I was lost and you
Found me in the wild of the land, was
Blind, but you taught me to hear and to see,
Was so caught up in the vastness of mine
Enemies that had befriended me, that
You revealed to me the depth of their
Hate and so I am free! Free to serve thee!
Now my lord! I pray call to yourself all
Who may hear the sound of the wind, the sea,
The ground, and the depths of space itself! For
I know your power the tempest from the
Blast of your horn which calls to you all those
That will listen to what they have heard, that
Summons the weak and the strong together
Into one place where they may befriend you
In each other, can so unite the land
That they may overcome the shackles of
Our enemies! Do as you have promised,
For I am your servant to command.


KING:                                           No.
I shall not as you suggest, for I am
Old, and, though it remains to be seen,
Wise enough to recognize another
Higher than me still. As for your request,
I shall pardon you of all your crimes, but
The last that you have just committed. For
It is not mine to forgive, its offense
Strong enough to deliver you into
The hands of those you would give your now
Enemies. For you have deified me,
Given me credit which is God's alone.
I am but flesh and blood, no savior
That might overcome the forces of night,
Those who are accursed to mine own sight.
And so I warn you, that you have but one
Chance to make right with He whom I do speak
Of. Lest you be taken in with the chaff,
As a goat that does proclaim mighty works
In the name of He who is higher than
I, I who am but a king of men, just
As you are but a lord of men. This then
Is my pronouncement. Let it be so known
That You, Boremmethous, are given leave
To reenter the kingdom you did once
Serve, on the condition that you do find,
Whether by the time of day or by night,
To come before the one you took me for
And beg pardon and peace in His name. So
Shall my wrath be appeased, and his also.
Now, as it is said, let it be done, and
May this mercy deliver from the hand
Of evil, mine and God's enemy, both
Our souls. Yes...we shall all die. Yes we shall...

Englishman

"The time has come!" the guard said to me, "That

Dreaded time has come! Do not be cross, we

Shall see whether all shall be as mum. If

Per chance there is some thing I can do? Do

Not resist, but please know this that I will

Do all in my power to save your life!"

I look in his eyes, how much I despise

The eyes of that little man. I would so

Destroy him with bow's of yew from England,

So taunt with the grace of my brothers. But

I, but a man, have no present plan, and

Am at the mercy of mine enemies.

So now I see, in his eyes, prettily,

The offer of greed that he offers. I

Look for a while, and then I smile.

With a wide grin I say, "You mean not, though

You would lead me to believe, what you say.

You have a way with your words, others as

Steeped in money's green tea would say the same.

So know this, my friend, I cannot pretend,

Shall not give in to your way. Tis finished."

Then his look of false worry turns to scorn,

That fearful brown replaced by the horns, I

Knew that he was hiding. He grabs me, pulls

Me through the door, I do so abhor these

Men who act on their anger. Then he drags

Me, his charge, all the way through the barge, and

Deposits my person at the end. Now

They all stand round, and make quite the sound, I

Can hardly know what they be saying. For

Like children they screech, as they do beseech

The judge to put an end, crave a hanging.

Now I hold my own, keep still, I'm alone,

In solitude I wait. I hear silence now,

I look up from my brow to see my dear foe.

To see him again, here, of all places,

This most gentle of friends from long ago

Turned vicious viper by systems of woe.

And you would think him turned by they

That now do jeer and jest, keep at bay my

Person as a prisoner of war. Yet

There is more to the game of politics,

It was not these men here, no! but six men

Of mine own government that did send him

Into the abyss of despair. And now,

His eyes do find mine, like magnets intent

Upon the illusive metal in my

Soul, so as to overcome my spirit,

And take control of the helm of my being.

But I know, unlike he, what I fight for.

No matter the rottenness of the egg,

No matter the cabbage that smells most foul,

No matter evil wrought by corruption,

I shall not bend my will to his cause. For

I, being what I am, should so deceive

Myself by admitting his cause true, must

Let go of my hopes and dreams, as men do

When they find themselves in despair. So now,

A test of wills; that will keep on their feet

Two men, both friends, though now they meet as foes.

                                                                                  Englishman, (c) Luke Bennette, March 2012

Teachers Taught

For Nicea, my nice; Falcon at heart. 


When I wake, fear takes a grasp on my heart,

For I know that I missed my place, my part,

My duty to wake for those I do love,

Oh, May I not be late, heavens above!

My children are all unsure, I am sure!

They most likely don't understand, and were

Their more time I would stop to think on this,

How fortunate we are at times to miss

The chiming of the clock, the ticking fiend,

That does cause us to walk in fettered dreams.

But for the simple fact, this simple task,

That we must wake and so put on the mask

Each and every one day, without fail.

Lest what we have should wither away. Pale

As I am, I put on my gown, I do

Fly as the gale, a tempests blast, rue

The day you stood in my way, do so fast

As the Catholics do on that day I past

On my way to wake my children at last.

But what is this that I hear? Downstairs there

Is such commotion, cheerful sounds on bare

Floors of marble and stone. Can it be so?

What do I see here but, oh heavens, oh!

How strange it is to see such a sight; my

Daughter changing the baby with delight.

To see her feed him with such loving care,

Tender and kind, as was mother bear to

Her young cubs, no baby doll that was bought

At a store with stuffing, as dolls are wrought,

But a child, my child, her brother;

Such mild sight as this, for a mother,

Is one some parents miss for another

Sort of sight, that of wealth of fortune, fame!

I'd rather see this, then play such a game.

She looks up, my daughter, and she smiles,

The way most girls do, those infantiles!

She brings my son straight over to me

Through the straits that are our living room floor,

And raising him high she gives him to me,

Her mouth spreads wide in a grin to adore

The mother that taught her through pains to love

Others with such tender glove, from above. 

                                                                    Teachers Taught, (c) Luke Bennette, March 2012

The Sanity of Pain

With a shuffle towards the door I do walk,
Though you think me well, well enough to talk.
I shudder with pain and grimace with disease,
So make your talk fast sir, if you do please.
You say that you are worried for my health,
That you don't know what to do, no such wealth
As you have can restore me to life's grasp,
For all of life tastes the sting of the asp.
I shake my head back and forth with anger,
So obvious is this; Jesus in a manger,
Such a fact as is reported was clear
As day, and so is my state if I may
Say so. For I tell him that he is dumb,
And that I, riddled with pain, have become
Deranged with such obvious despair that
He should not speak with so little care. At
Once his face is touched, the lines do appear,
And he looks down; is it anger or fear?
I cannot tell but he turns away; I know
I let my tongue escape, my heart strung bow
Was to hard, to taunt, and it do so break
As the morning does upon the ridge; bleak
Is my condition, and now my heart seeks
A new position that it may atone.
Words spoken in pain are likened to stone.

One + One = Two

Almost asleep while standing on my feet,

I look about me for some sweet relief;

I see thereof my house, my home, and bed;

But then I see a sight, that stops me dead.

Your tears upon the roadway do glisten

And your person is lost, is so missing.

Awake with fire, and newly renewed

I seek out your presence; for I am cued 

By lost hopes, and gentle desires found

Upon the road where you lost them, unsound

Of mind and heart, and your soul which has fled

From sanity by the street of the dead. 

Into the wild of the void that is darkness....

Yet hearken to me if You will hear me,

I shall find your lost hopes and your lost dreams

Because You are very dear unto me,

I shall find You by any and all means.

I shall follow your trail of brokenness,

Until I find You, though nothingness

I must cross, I will do it, tis my turn!

My spirits now awakened, my soul burns

To be off, though I know my Spirit but faint,

As some stranger who's merely acquainted

To myself, shakes my hand, but then he walks;

But to hold him back where I shall need him,

I have Hope that shall in due time feed him.

Then to complete this company of dreams,

I have gentle Courage. Although it seems

My troupe is not yet complete, for faith does

Hail me from across the way, "Your foes

Do close in upon you like night the day,

Run, retreat! I'll cover your flight and way!"

So with now rearguard covers my path, and we

Move across, following the aftermath

Of your deep distress, now tainted so red.

I pray and I hope that you have not bled

In vain, so to return to love and life!

Yet suddenly, overcome by the strife

I falter, down upon my knees, in mud

That has covered me in grim. I do shud

Er to think that you have passed by this way;

And aided by Spirit and Hope I say,

"Courage, do light the way for us my friend!

Tell us what you find, what lies round the bend?

If you should find her body and spirit

Still here in this world let us hear of it!"

Then goes Courage around the bend, as a

Star that is brighter than the brightest day.

So I wait with still Hope, my Spirit too,

And we wait in silence, we think on You.

Then up comes a cry as loud as the dawn

That does overcome every darkness, fawn's

It's way into my sight diminished and

Speaks as though an orchestra, such a grand

Cry did I hear that I ran, my legs worn

From the chase, leaden with fatigue. But born

Anew was my friend Spirit, and dear Hope

Did press me harder still to further cope

With the hardness I was yet to endure.

Then turning the corner we saw them both.

First Courage, with a twinkle in his eye;

But t'was the second that I did espy.

Faith, come to meet us, though we knew not how

Now held in his arms with a sweaty brow

My Sister. Pale, her side was bleeding, such

Tears in her eyes that but the slightest touch

Might send her reeling into the abyss.

But she was alive, that I could not miss!

Though she was covered from head to toe

In the mantle of sorrows and of woes


She looked up at that moment to see me.

Such joy tells  us, we desire to be.

And with her face still bent from nights trials

She grimaced in pain, as though her dials

Were not working the way that they should; for

She looked up only as far as she could.

To quell the words I knew she would speak,

And to save her from becoming so weak

I did speak these words to her soul, "My dear,

My sister, My kin, My blood, I do fear

That you may yet be taken from my sight.

Do not then speak though you would and might,

Of troubles and woes that filled you with fright.

It is all past now, leave it to the past,

You are safe here with me, present at last!"

She smiled from the arms of Faith and said,

"My brother, will you please, put me in bed?"

I laughed out loud and remembered it well,

That when you are tired you are in hell.

Without common reason, devoid of sense

We do grave deeds, we seek such recompense

As will fill the void for the hurt we made

Upon others hearts, or the hurts they bade

Us carry. So now, both tired, but free,

We walk off down that road quite merrily,

We walk now to go to bed, our minds full,

Our heads held high, we've overcome the toll. 

For hell cannot conquer a band of two.

Cannot destroy Faith, Hope, our Spirits blue,

Not even gentle Courage! No, it can't.  

As long as you have Me and I have You.

                                                                 Two, (C) Luke Bennette, March 2012

Friday, March 30, 2012

Dreaming up Reality

Held by my own fantasies of true love
I must call upon sleep from up above!
For my head runs through her images fair,
And my heart throbs without so much a care
For the sleep that my body craves, and needs.
And so I think on other things, that they
May blot out the essence of her statue.
These are but a few things that I thought on
While I waited for love's hand to be gone.

While I lie here I have waking dreams that
Cause me to fly, or so it seems; for cats
Seem evil, but no one has proved it, yet!

While I sit here I have strange day dreams that
Would seem to be writ, or so it would seem;
Are daydreams original in my mind?

While I stand there, I have odd thoughts, that my
Wife is fair, or so she would seem. Don't all
Men think their wife the fairest in the land?

While I jump this tree, I feel quite free! But
When I bump my head I curse instead. For
All good things will come to pass in due time.

While I watch you, everything clicks! But
Then I botch it all, I failed to mix.
It all seems so easy until I try.

When I look up from my book, you stare, as
Though my thoughts took from your beauty. Do thoughts
Not have some impact upon others being?

When I'm at home, I wish myself alone,
And I pat myself on the back; don't we
All find ourselves good, and good to look at?

When I take five, I thank God I'm alive!
And I make a prayer or two; it may
Be the last five I get, wouldn't you too?

Now that I'm asleep, I take a beat, to
Be sure that I'm really awake; what's more
Real? Life or a dream? Or does it seem?

Now all is done, and I have become my
Calling, every bit of my poem writ; so
Goodbye, I'll kiss dreaming skies; should I
Find myself thinking of nothing, a blessing
Will I heap upon whatever soul did
Leap to take away my discontented part.
Without it I am free to sleep at last,
Leave alone the, future, present, and past.

Dreaming Up Reality, (C) Luke Bennette, March 2012

God the Clown

With a chortle and a change in my voice I go in,

I behave like a fool, all in order to win

His attention, at first, so that he may

Learn to see, me, in a different way.

Now he see's me, as a clown am I now,

I pick him up toss him, but mop my brow;

For playing with children is such hard work

That you must do it right, can't be a jerk!

You must chase them and catch them, just like God

Who chases unceasingly while we plod

About our miserable lives, so bleak,

We don't even know we'll survive the week!

But back to the child who doesn't yet know

Of the pains, the sorrows, or terrible woe,

We've got to be bright, just like a light!

We've got to grab them, hold on so tight!

When they say No, No, No, I wont do it!

We've got to say, Ha, Ha, Ha, I'll do it!

Each child wants to be like mom or dad,

So it's important to be, just a tad,

The sort of person we want them to be,

So that they wont end up in misery.

We've got to act God, the child takes our cue,

Then we will hear, "I want to be like you!"

But we say to ourselves, I can't do it!

We are tired, we just can't go through it!

Yet inside of us, if we will listen,

There is a clown telling us, to lean in,

To do everything while standing up tall,

To push, and push hard, to give it our all!

If we don't listen, we're probably dead,

Haven't woken up, and are still in bed.

But if we do, chances are, me and you,

Have already heard this reminder, true.

Are putting on our garment or our gown,

We prepare to become funny old clown.

We open the door and he see's us there,

He see's us as we are, a clown. Now fair

Trials of life, and of woe, will so tear

Us astrife as we soe. The seeds are our

Children, the future of all; we all are

Children, if we listen to God's call. So

We all imitate the one standing tall.

We act our part, with our clown shoes and all!

God the Clown, (C) Luke Bennette, March 2012

Simple Fury peach Fuzz

What is all the world but a stage? So some

Bard, some goodly sage of Britain once said.

But what if I told, that is, were bold, to say

That there's more to life than merely a play?

For though you see the act from outside, you

Don't truly know or realize, that the

Actors who are there onstage, are but

Figs on a tree; you are the branches! So

Why do you look to the actors on stage,

When they look to you as they pledge to speak

Only the truth? For you'll find if you try,

There's a twinkle in your eye, that has them

Truly, forsooth! They know they understand

Less, so they command you to perform that

They may so adorn, may imitate you,

They are so forlorn, pray "satiate us!

For we know not who or what to be. Show

Us what is, and we with a wiz, will show

You what we see. And so while you see,

We shall also be! There will be no quiz

On this stuff, or else we do bluff, for you

Must find within our act that you were blind,

That's just a fact! And so choose now to be

What you were, are, and what you will be. For

Upon seeing yourself in a mirror,

It's hopeful that you do see quite clearer.

But for those of you who can't see within,

Just look at us! We'll show you what we see,

Take it from us! We'll tell you merrily!

We'll tell you you're woes and all of your fears,

We'll bring you to frown, to groan, and to tears!

We'll make you laugh like never before, and

At the end you will say, "Where is the door?"

For the merriment of life's quiz, has so

Discombobulated you, made a wiz

Of those that have listened and seen; and so

Because of what we've said you have been more

Careful now of how you behave, lest we

The masters of comedy make you slave

To overcome that look, that behavior,

That took you by surprise; we're your savior!"

This is truly what honest chaps will say,

When they take you out to see but a play.

So if you think that all the worlds a stage,

Take it from me, I who am but a page

To you who are the knight I imitate.

The world is one that I don't understand

So I look to you, who do reprimand

Others for being what and who they are,

I then imitate what I hear and see,

And what I come up with sets me free!

The world is a world, that much is, so sure,

But you who are certain of place, or were,

Are showing me the things of life, indeed,

The very things that I don't like, I bleed

From your anger, your hate, your avarice,

Your gluttony, your lust, and if you must

Know, your idolatry. So now, what to say,

That hasn't already been said to you?

The world is but, "simple furry peach fuzz!"

Because you said so, that's all, just because.  

Simple Furry Peach Fuzz, (C) Luke Bennette, March 2012

The Room of a Child

What is he? But a child, sitting in bed,

His crooked smile, emoting delight.

As he seeks to delay the nap, instead,

He receives one look of warning from a

Kindred Sprite. A raised eyebrow and eyes

That speak volumes to quench his hopes, he tries

To overcome these all too powerful

Popes, meets resistance, such a tower, full

Of patience rest assured, but not blurred.

He inside the tower looks but to stare,

To quell the insolent spirit, this bear

Of a child that is his charge. So now,

His lip trembles, he knows it's all up, how

Shall he change his tactics? his game is up!

So he looks down, just a little and sighs,

Starts to sniffle, to whine, and so he cries

Because of this tower that will not budge,

His whines, becomes impatience, makes such sludge

That did form from ice and mud hit with sun.

He looks up during his act, has he won?

Have his looks so sullen and upset done

Wonders upon the tower? Jericho

Might have tumbled from the racket, but no,

This tower, adult, is wise to his game,

Because in times past he'd have done the same.

So the tower sprouts arms, he reaches down,

Grasps the little soldier by the waist, frown

Now in place, picks him up. Tosses him high,

Up to the ceiling, that is to the sky.

And when he lands this child grins and knows,

That the issue is resolved, the case closed.

He look one last time from his into mine.

He is courageous and brazen, tall pine

That his is, this soldier child, is not

Afraid to take a chance, will risk it all

For a single glance from the tower tall.

And so for a moment, the soldier, grim

With uncertainty, awaits towers brim.

Or does he mistake what he knows to be

A mere game of patience, is it a whim?

Yet he is gratified, relief such bliss!

For the tower begins to do as he wished.

The slit that is in the tower within

Breaks wide into a smile must give in,

To the brave little soldier this small child.

The tower tosses him once more up high,

And tells him now that he must say goodbye,

But he'll come tomorrow to do battle,

If the soldier doesn't pine like cattle.

The tower lowers this kindred spirit,

Into his bed,says "don't let me hear it."

So he gives the tower one last look, and

Hopes that he'll read to him another book,

But the Tower has run out of patience,

Tells him to sleep, he has other patients

To see before the day is said and done.

Since the boy knows how the story goes, he

Lies back down to sleep, but as tower leaves

He gives up a cry, "please please! will you sing?

So the tower then stops, planted firmly,

His mind hidden within, "you bumblebee,

Must you tickle me with your trite requests?"

So the boy throws a fit, he's sick of it!

And doesn't want a nap after all. But

Then he hears, "All right, have no fears, tut tut!

No bar room brawls shall we have in this room."

Then he opens his gates, which emanates,

A strong and sonorous voice. And the boy,

He sits back, lies his head on the sack that

Holds his pillow inside. Listens to that song,

And he sings along, with the pretty brides.

These give the Keep sternness to keep such boys

Under control. Yet when the gate is down,

Such beauteous sound as now emanates,

Comes out in full force from the heart of course,

From the lady in the highest of keeps.

For out of all towers comes a song, full

Of powers, That gives the hearer faith, hope

To escape trolls underneath the landscape,

That is underneath his head, or his bed.

So the boy does lie down, his peaceful frown

Mingled with wonder and fear, the tower

Now closes the gate as he touches the

Small boy but to cheer his face with his warmth.

Now the boy smiles like infantile's

Who do know that heavenly love is near.

So the tower, done it's task, turns to go,

At the door of the world he looks back on

His charge, this small boy not yet grown or large.

The slit within opens wide in a grin,

As he contemplates him where he lays. So

Now he leaves, but a crack if you please, in

The doorway to the great unknown, heaven. 

The Room of A Child, (C) Luke Bennette

Shades of Truth

ENTER KREL: AUSTEN stands above the outline of a dead body now vanished.

KREL:      How now my friend?

AUSTEN: Shall you be calling me
                  By a title that is no longer yours?

KREL:      You do believe then in the rumors spread
                  By Mischievous Fink, I warrant so.

AUSTEN: No. This act of brutality is more
                  Subtle, tame, controlled; the grim assailant  
                  Was under some censure.

KREL:      You think him bought?

AUSTEN: Bought or no he is now gone; and with a curse
                   I am sure, for the damage is done now.

KREL:       You think that you know him?

AUSTEN: Perhaps, possibly.
                   I do admit myself curious, for
                   The tracks did bear a resemblance to our
                   Once friend John; and this, look upon this Krel,
                   A glove, it bears the same pattern as
                   We did see when last we all met, in France. 
                   A glove left behind in dreaded cold wind
                   Such as we experience suggests flight.

KREL:       True, but, he might be a mere witness, friend.

AUSTEN:  Do not call me that again, you contend
                   With me for all that I do hold dear, and
                   At one point for the one that is now dead.
                   Her body lay so close, where you now stand.

KREL:       You may as well blame the car that drove her
                   To this place, but it would do you no good!
                   She is gone! Left without a word of love...

AUSTEN: You should be the more sad brow for this act
                  Than I if you loved her, as she did claim.

KREL:       She spoke to you?

AUSTEN: Yes. And more. She told me of your discourse
                  With John some four nights ago.

KREL:       Did she now?
                   Well, I admit, yes, I was there, John too.
                   I entered in on their discourse, not mine.
                   She told you differently, didnt she?
                   I am not surprised. You would not have so
                   Approved, just as I, of her actions here.
                  
AUSTEN: You may as well spell words in the wind
                   For all the good that your speaking does. Speak
                   More plainly of it.

KREL:       What have you heard?

AUSTEN: No.
                  You tell me of what transpired here, Krel.

KREL:       If it will appease your temper I shall.
                   You might be unhappy with me after,
                   But for the sake of our friendship I'll tell
                   You in blunt words the whole affair I saw.
                   I came here that evening, as she might have
                   Told you, for a trinket I had forgot.
                   She did not answer, and I considered
                   That perhaps I had better return some
                   Other time, but, what caught my attention
                   As I stepped back suggested otherwise.
                   The door was slightly ajar. I entered,
                   You may not like it, but I entered still,
                    I was curious to what carelessness
                   Could lead your sister to such a mistake
                   At the dark of night, and in these, unpleasant
                   Parts. I had only gone a few paces
                   When I heard the racket from the back. I
                   Paused. But as the din grew louder still, I
                   Became worried that she might be harmed. So,
                   I hurried to her door, opened it, and
                   Found John and her at opposite corners
                   Of the room. Before I could assess the,
                   Situation, or the delicacy
                   Of the matter I had to duck, else be
                   Cannon fodder for the Illiad's frame.
                   Then, John spoke, if you call expletives with
                   Four letters speaking. He was furious
                   With her, the reason sill a mystery
                   I admit, I could barely understand
                   His meaning because she in turn threw such
                   Heavy objects his way that they made dents
                   In the wall, you probably saw them friend.
                   But, since I try your patience, I'll say on. She
                   Saw me before he did, and he noticed
                   Her turn, spied me as some rat fink that was
                   Here for her bed, and charged at my person.
                   You may laugh at this, but it's all true! I swear!
                   He was in such fury that, I, somewhat,
                   Afraid, that is to say of what he'd do
                   To me if he got to me, and so I
                   Decided to run, but, before I--

AUSTEN: Stop!
                  You have satisfied me with your story.
                  She told me as much.

KREL:      Then you know that I had no ill intents
                  Towards her? After the affair I had
                  Even offered to take her to my home.
                  Where I thought she'd be safer from him.

AUSTEN: Yes.

KREL:       Then, you'll quit your suspicions of me?

AUSTEN:  No.
                   I will let my imaginations run;
                   Like wild fire, uncontrolled, at dusk!
                   So they may consume the night with such sight
                   That they must be attended to with speed,
                   Lest my imaginings destroy innocents.

KREL:      I did not have nor would have had any
                  Cause to harm her so.

AUSTEN: I, am not so sure.
                  So far only John's glove is found, and you
                  Are clear of suspicion unimagined.
                  But regardless, I shall uphold John in
                  Court as soon as I can find him.

KREL:      My friend,
                  Surely he will decry such an object
                  As mere supposition, not enough to
                  Be tried at court.

AUSTEN: Then know this, enemy;
                  His deprecation's will not be enough
                  To give me reason for disparage, no.
                  I shall exploit his every weakness, yea,
                  And shall hurauge the courts that they shall
                  Have no choice but to proceed into trial.


KREL:       I do not doubt that your reasons are just,
                  But have you no thought for the harm that will
                  Come of this? You could impair your own state,
                  You are but a shell of your former self,
                  And trial as this might give him cause
                  To return in the dead of night.

AUSTEN: You jest,
                  Him bold, to injure me, any way, Ha!
                  I would be more likely jeer at him
                  And he the more likely to stay away;
                  Lest he should knock on memories too harsh
                  For his thoughts!

KREL:      Your libel did great mischief.
                  If you had but thought them through, perhaps now,
                  He would not have so carried out this act
                  Of malgin, would not have mistreated your
                  Kin; as it stands, she that does lie here, so
                  Cold to our touch, might not have needed to
                  Withstand his subtle vindication. Yet,
                  Now she is dead, manhandled by your lies.

AUSTEN: I have called you friend once, enemy now;
                  Do not give me more cause to mar the past.

KREL:      Would you so misapply my person, my
                  Reputation and more, because you could
                  Not stomach the truth? Repeat your mistake
                  If you must, but consider, molester,
                  That by such objurgation of me, as
                  You do seem to imply, you will bring down
                  Such persecution upon your head that
                  You shall partake in the very same shame
                  That you do place upon he that did this
                  Heinous act!

AUSTEN: Revile me if you will, as I am
                  Only too worthy of the title you
                  Do heap upon my head, but know this, Krel;
                  If you interfere with my designs or
                  With the proceedings of court I shall soon
                  Embark upon, I will make bold of my
                  Threats, as I did to he that is now fled.
                  Consider then, the weight of your fair words
                 Against the depth of my cruel designs.
                 Though I be in truth what you say I am,
                 You may, as he does, feel but a mere sham.
                 Now, my threats made, my hunt about to start,
                 I bid you well, but warn you as we part,
                 That I shall be watching for you; upstart!

EXIT AUSTEN:

KREL:      Fare you well, molester of women. So,
                  You think that you can with all of your words
                  Threaten me? You have yet to taste cunning,
                  Have yet to feel what it means to be cut
                  To the bone by words of steel. For shall he,
                  That did make so bold with his threatening,
                  Be so satisfied in his rude affront?
                  No, I'll find another way, more subtle,
                  As I have already employed through John.
                  But I know that as I speak these words you
                  Who have heard them shall bear my secret in
                  The quiet of your mind, so as to see
                  The conclusion of this mystery . Do,
                  Though, if you have some merit in your heart,
                  Try to stop what is to come, do your part.
                  This girl was but a tart, her brother vile,
                  Now shall I make him seem so infantile.

SHADES OF TRUTH, a Scene by Luke Bennette, (C) March 2012

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Confession

Knight:
Forgive me father for I have sinned, and
In this capacity. That I abjure
From the sacraments day and night, that I
Do so abolish my self as I am
For a new evil, that I did find in
My heart; I did seek to annihilate
Those that would keep me fettered in chains of
Iron, destroy not only their person
But all those that are connected to them.
Bless me father for I have now told lies,
I do so dismiss these sins confessed
As they are not yet come to pass in time,
Have not yet been accepted into that
Book that eradicates those occurrences
That were so harmful to the winner's cause
From existence, that makes null our hopes,
Denies to the looser his human dreams
Of liberty and justice. By a bridge
Of illuminated light have I so
been led, to condense what I know, as though
Facts were mixed into mere fiction, have so
Encased my instincts within the bitter
Lies that I took for truth! Oh dear father,
Absolve me from these future sins that I
Must, for the good of our people, commit!
Give courage of God that I may acquit
Myself without pain of death on my soul!
For such is my task, that I must clear all
Who with such vile intentions discharge
From service the very act of reason.
Let me be that exemption father, let
Me exonerate those that do fight for
Liberty and Justice, forgive them their
Offenses most foul and rank, that we
Might liberate our fair home and state; give
Me pardon for future acts, dear father!


Priest:
Purge yourself of such desires my son!
Do you not know that vengeance is Gods? Then,
Why do you seek such purification
For such heinous acts as these you do
Admit yourself willing to commit? Do
You seek the redemption that is his
For yourself alone? For those that do act
True to the cause of his cross, were released
By his most sorrowful dead? My son, be
Vindicated; you seek vindication
By all the wrong means! They will so consume
Your troubled soul for a thousand years to come,
Generations untold shall not digest,
Shall merely envelop understanding
Without making it their own. When they do
Incorporate in the book of history
Your acts, they shall use them in due process
As the very means of destroying faith!
Such abuse of reason for reasons sake
Will cause the powers of the world to strike
At us without mercy, to assail our
Cause with all the attacks they can muster!
My son, I must berate you, for designs
Such as this will cause only harm to us.
Do not employ that which you do so hate,
For it will cause a blemish, no mistake!

An Untitled Play, Scene: Confession, (C) Luke Bennette, March 2012



Hells Bells

While I recognize the hypocrisy

Of my words, held in plain view by daylight,

I cannot help but state the facts that cause

Me to lose hope, move me to hate my friends,

To descend into darkness where I may

Never mend. Shall I tell you how it came

To pass how I was lost even while

At mass? You were there, were you not? As I

Sought about for something to say, some thought

That would not lead me astray, yet you did

Not act upon what you saw, but with nods

Of prayer, full of reflection, deceived

Your eyes of my distress, continued on

Your path of self righteousness, while

I felt more and more duress.  Thus like a

Man who hath fallen down into some cave

Do I now labor about, I so slave

To escape my dreaded prison, of which

I have no name to give; such is my life,

A darkness, an abyss where in I live.

Wherein I have talents I would give.

Were you not charged thus, to set free captives,

Held by such chains? Then why do you not act

Upon the Word made clear by homilies?

Held back perhaps by some mad, unknown fear?

You are like a man brought out of darkness,

Who having seen the great light did rejoice!

But having found your place among the light

You forgot your message and in such spite

Did seek to move further up, further in,

Until those left behind, those still in sin,

Were but the memory of some distant

Shade that once did battle with your soul through

The battlements of your eyes. The slit by

Which you still defend yourself, your fortress,

That tower of iron and stone, prevents

You from bringing in any others still

Lost. Should you not like Plato said announce

Such Words of heavenly bread to those still

Left in darkness and dread? Why do you sit

Upon the precipice so sharp as teeth,

That mouth that seeks to consume heart and soul,

That gaping maw which prevents us to leave?

For how can we leave unguided by phial

light, bright as that of Galadriel's might?

Should Frodo so escape his prison as

He was? Naked, devoid of any love?

You lack the heart of the Gaffer, inside

You are merely afraid to walk outside

And give this light to others; errant knave!

Yet looking here deep within, my heart of

Stoney wrath, I cannot help but see my

Sin. I preach, yet do not follow, no trust

Will I give to they whom I do attend.

So now listen well, my hearts cry, my plea;

That you should not descend into such hell,

Please, my dear friends, do not end up like me!

For having seen the light I did so contend

With disbelief and now might never mend,

But for the hope that is still in my heart,

That someday the Light shows my better parts.

For I did see the light and thought to live,

But through painful spite I forgot to give.

Hell's Bells, (C) Luke Bennette, March 2012

Scare Crow Tactics

Shall I describe this dreaded one to you?

Yes, I shall, though you may seek to hide

Your face from such images it shall do

Well to inspire you  to flee mortal, fell

Beast as this is causes such dread that with

Or without the greatest light inside, you

May still shake and quake. Trust in your hope friend.

His eyes, first those, that do hold you fast, should

You have no peace of mind, darkness inside

Those eyes of wooden pine, they see naught at

All, yet appall heart and soul with dreaded blight.

So with his eyes will he look into yours,

With rhymes black as fright he will turn your sight

Into the darkest black, the blackest night.

His head a shadow, not invisible,

Though what else may you take for a shadow?

Rather it shifts about, the mast at sea,

Under great duress does so mimic his grace;

For uncontrollable is the wind that

Is upon him, that is dreaded sin.

His arms, his hands, his legs his feet, all

Made of bark, but  hollow inside, such is

His body made up, but of wounded pride

That does fall to pieces should you escape

The chills upon the nape of your neck; from

Those eyes of wood, and from his emptiness.

Now for his torso, tis such a strange sight;

For this is the key to his devilish might.

Made from smoke and fire, that does course through

An empty shell, makes him look like such a cad!

An empty scarecrow would be like this lad!

Yet I must warn you of that within, for

Tis lacking a heart, all consumed by sin.

So now you see but for his dreaded sight,

This scarecrow, this tin man, this lion's shell,

Would be mere powder and dust, but from hell

He does come to gather his fee, and like

Job we do find ourselves, at the mercy

Of his hated and injurious grasp.

So what is the key of victory then,

By which we enter into heaven's keep?

How can we defeat such rotten tin men,

Outsmart cads without an ounce of brains,

And defeat empty exterior shell

That does cry out danger to us? This way!

Do not look into his eyes, for there you

Will learn to despise what is truly good.

Act instead with a heart, since you have one,

Use your brains fool! For he lacks common sense.

Proclaim to all exactly what you are,

So that you may be humble and go far.

Now for the last and final step to take.

Let your heart be broken by those you see,

Lest you keep it locked inside your pantry

To be nibbled upon by mice and bugs.

Show the world that you have a heart to give,

That you have brains inside of you, and live

Your life outside what is in; do not lie.

This is the greatest of paradoxes .

That we should live inside out with foxes.

Scare Crow Tactics, (C) By Luke Bennette, March 2012

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Cheetahs Embrace

The tapping of your foot, grinding of your

Teeth, huffing of your breath, all seem to say

Peace, come not near me, else you shall die! Yet

Upon seeing you my day seems brighter,

The air I breath also seems much lighter,

And all else fades, save your frustration made

Worse by the thought, oh! consternation! that

I who am untouched by your pains, your quiet

Woes that beset you with aches, do look so

dumb to you; shall this be the world of love?

That one shall be happy and the other sad?

You feign away, as though mistaking my

Love for some middle aged bubonic plague,

As though with one touch I could take away

A third of your life and live off of it.

Come now, is work so present to you that

You must move when I am at your side? Do

You not know your very essence makes pride

Seem so petty? As tree's stomach winter's

Icy touch until they must wake again?

So do I touch your hands as they retreat,

My body rings out in joy, while yours does

Fails to reciprocate loves signals. You

Shove me back, and for a moment I should

Think you for a teapot, boiling over

All the day's worries and frustrations in

One single scream of vice and sin. My hands

Go for my ears, as your voice finds itself.

You rant, you rail, you use colorful

Words with such efficiency that I blush

In pale modesty. But then your mouth

Runs slack against another bout of hate

Still newly formed by my defense, this gate

That I do hold up to my ears prevents

You from being heard. Yet as you prepare

To fall upon me, a hawk in the sky

Against some poor prey without a chance, I

Lean forward and take my own pretty chance;

By planting a kiss upon your lips. Then,

Your eyes now closed with some mixed feelings, your

lips bent askew in deliberation,

You sigh; as car that lacked a muffler.

Recognizing my imminent danger

I swoop in for the kill, a lone ranger.

I clasp my hands about your waist, and pull

You full into my cheetahs embrace. I

Look into your stricken eyes and I say,

I'm sorry about what happened today.

If you'll forgive and forget as those proud

Elephants do, for a moment you'll get

sweet relief; from me unto you. Her eyes

Do show the struggle within, her desire

To hate me, but also to give in; she

Rages about, like the stormy waves at sea.

Such is love that we must fight of ourselves,

To overcome hate, and gain lovers glee!

So it was when she looked at me and said,

I am yours to love only when we've wed.

For cheetahs do run the distance so quick,

I'd rather take it slow, and make seconds tick,

Lest Love should turn into such dreary lust;

Lust fails to last when we are turned dust.

Cheetah's Embrace, (C) Luke Bennette, March 2012

The Fourth Generation

Motivate me thou foul fiend of hells being,

Or have you the strength to keep me here?

Have you no power to continue on

In this game of chance, fortune's bitter fame?

Did I not give all I had to overthrow

Who I am inside, did I not lose all

That I was for the sake of becoming

Someone else? Yet you cannot deliver!

For though hells message of cunning deceit

Is strong, attractive, grasps you by your own

Defenses so as to use avarice

Against piety, it fail's in it's

Abysmal quest for lacking proper ID!

The good that this did for me, for I, like

An amateur failed to prompt credentials,

And have so rued my mistake by my life.

A frame does hold a picture, tis true, but

How does a picture hold a frame? There

Is such logic that the devil uses,

Causes us confusion, he so abuses

Our intellect that we become quite numb

With information; now that we have it

We are paralyzed to act for having

Too much or too little of the thing. Act

Upon your deepest desires he says,

Bask in the light of your own intent and

See how great you're light shines forth from this place!

Such a thought leads one to dreaded disgrace,

For I have given in to it's demand,

Been made wanton by dreams unmet, and so

Despairing in what I cannot nor will

Not do, I sit in silence without a

Clue as to what might be possible, save

For the words that I hear over again

and again, they that hound me to repent

Of my deception and so leave dusty

Jack and his fiddle here in Georgia.

Now what's for it, what shall I do? Is there

Anyone that can set me on the path

That I desire? Yet what do I find

Worthy of interest, what beckons to my

Craving soul that could keep me for but one

Instant happy, as the thought of true love

That sets upon every man when alone.

Thus for want of fame and glory have I

Spent my motivation on cheap tricks, and

So rued the day when I was led astray.

Now the heavens above reek of storm's foul,

Their intent is to drive me away where

I shall find myself to weak to walk, to sad

To sing, to hungry to work, to thirsty

To speak out even a single greeting.

So shall I who lacked motivation now

Wander the world. As Cain slaying Able

Have I acted, or Lady Macbeth, all

Determined to murder for her fill. This

Is my family legacy and curse; to

Act the part of the first, not the last; for

Ever in want of what I had, what's past.

Family Curse (C) Luke Bennette

Summer's Land

Where does it start and where does it end?
Why do green tree's so much offend me where
Winter's hand could not? The pollen they
Drop causes me to flop upon the ground,
With great wheezing fits; so is spring to
Me, but a monstrous fee that does so
Enjoy to pick on me-- as a bully at school.
Yet I know that in the end all will be well,
Because no one keeps spring, no! Not winters
Hand, a raging war, no not even hell
With all it's armies hell bent could stop me
From admiring the beauteous promise now
Before mine eyes. For spring, though early yet,
Not fully matured, as it blossoms and
Blooms in the early morning of time gone
Mad, doth hold for me the hidden key to
All life itself, shall show to me the door
By which I shall enter in, to fair
Summer's land. There shall all be well in a
Fair summer light; for I cannot know the
Warmth of spring which does so offend mine eyes.
Like the many two footed lovers that
Do without restraint love their lives away,
So is Spring early spent, an opening fray.
I must be patient, and by the bright day
Keep myself until the end of spring's sight.
But by summer's gate, spring's hidden key, shall
I enter in and so win my lover's
Fee; a kiss. Thus, though my life is now spent
A quarter, a parcel of mine age gone,
And youth all but spent, I shall regain my
Heart and soul in summer's eyes. For walking
From the door, that door that is young youthful
Revelries, I see her now, yea high, now
In the prime of her beauty; holding strong
For her lover's fee. Just like me. Oh, to
Walk through fields of barley and hay without
The touch of blight, no pain in my sight. Ah,
So much bliss does this, her sight, give to me.
To smell the dry crisp air that descends on
My lover and I, all as good as some
Tale told long ago; for princes and brides
That did live in such circumstance were not
Mere figments of imagination so
Long as they had men to believe in them.
Now for it. Now to conquer my youth and
So win the day. Now for it! To give her
My prime, if only to hear her say those
Words I've heard a thousand times in fairy
Tales untold. Sadly impatient lovers
All make bold requests, and lying deceit
Will drop from the lips of mammon's greed. So
Now do I forgo mammon's own version,
And make bold with full knowledge who I am
So as to recant worldly treasures that
Would separate me from my lover's fee.
She smiles at me, a look that contains
Spring's youth mixed with summer's passion, a
Passion that knows no limits, does not stay
Within the boundaries of either spring
Or summer's rays, but hopes in the strength of
Our bond, this union, this gaze so strong, that
Together, hand in hand, we shall last the
Thirst of Autumn; that we might do so
Would be a great success that most fail at.
So we look forward to the setting of
The sun in all it's majesty. I look
Yonder and see the sky, already pale
With the dry spell brought about by the hard
Rules imposed on nature's mantle. And by
Such sight I see further still through winter
And all it implies for our love, our lives.
Then looking down I see already that
The snow has set upon the ground; our hands,
Still entwined, have not found pain in the cold.
What's more I find that I am old in her
Eyes, and that she too bears a frail frame.
I smile, for though I despise ideas
That suggest what must come to pass I do
Sing, for our love that came in late summer
Did also last until our years were spent.
And we did so revel in each other
That time's hand touched us not inside our hearts,
It may have crippled us with age, but did
Not take away our better parts. So now
I step in further still, another step.
She steps in too, close to me, so we've kept
Each other until the day we died. Though
We know not where we are going, or what
We are to do, we started somewhere, and
Ended where we stand. Now it is time for you
To take your own journey through summer's land.

Summer's Land, (C) Luke Bennette, March 2012

Untitled Song

(Refrain) Oh, I just can't be what you want me to be
I need grace from above to set me free!
Sing it out loud there's nothing to hide!
Why must you be so full of pride?
I am who I was meant to be,
God is my savior, in his tent I am free!

Do you think that all your works are meant
To be yours alone, you jerks have spent
All of your time trying to be what you were,
You shouldn't mime spying, just try to concur!
You just sit there, your're all closed off!
You act unfair, and you've nosed off
To a bad start, and I don't like what I see,
It's tearing the fabric of reality.
But you don't part with your fools intelligence,
You act like I'm a fool with no money, no pence,
No money means no notice, that's what you're thinking,
But you better know this, fool's I'm ain't blinking!

(Refrain)

I just want you to understand me why I go through it
I don't mean to reprimand or to even over do it!
Can't understand why it's got to be you or me,
Why's everybody Else's image of me,
Some dark haughty? a shell of reality?
They see somebody through their own glass of pain,
Then they expect a bad fellow, abstain!
Just what they expected,
They never protected,
Never even suggested,
Cause it would have interfered with the fellow they detected.
And all because of a lack of respect,
The fell to the floor, they hit the deck!

(Refrain)

Trying hard to rise, to over come
What they so despised,  whats over done!
Isn't there more to life than this?
Where's love and  joy, the life of bliss?
This blending, so much hate and strife,
The tending pate that fills my life!

Can't you fix it?
Fool don't mix it!
Why don't you nix all the pain in my heart?
That kills me inside, you fain, why not start,
To see me as I was truly meant to be?
As God see's me, in eventuality! 

Cause life is more than just your opinion,
I ain't gonna be your little minion,
Just take your cup of black tea and drink it!
I like coffee, black and white, don't think it!

With all the ge-ner-ality, that floats in-si-de of you,
You call me a mon-stro-sity, false pride will do!
You think me dishonest? If that's the best you can do,
You think yourself the best? What am I to you?

But in the end I know, it will all come to pass
Cause I saw the way that you was lookin at mass,
Trying to act like you're better than me,
Because of what you take me to be, you'll see!
Create an evil out of what you see,
When will you see as you were meant to see?
Become the man that you are inside!
Let that fill you with  heavenly pride!

Let the fire take you to the top,
Getting higher now don't stop!
Keep going don't flop,
head first on the floor!
Look up now at the man, don't attack,
His paint isn't white or even black,
Now you understand we are all a match
If you understand my meaning my catch!

(Refrain)

Now it's said and done, it's all on the mend,
Don't look into the past, don't try to blend
What you've earned, repented in the present
Try not to pretend, you aren't some peasant.
Remember that you did this, don't forget!
Don't say this didn't happen, cause I bet,
That when you are at peace at last
You'll wake from a dream now long past!

(Refrain)

Atonement Takes Two

A Song. 

As I walk through the valley of my home
I see myself, realize that, I'm alone,
Looking into mirror, makes you wanna atone,
How else you gonna make em throw you a bone?

Its bad enough that you and I, with our
Heads caught up in such a lie,  we can't
Figure ourselves out, so we write all day
We boss elves about! Cause no-one else will
Hear our tithes, they don't comprehend don't fully
Realize, We're hell bent on discovery,
All we want is some money, just a fee!

Cause it seems to be what it's all about,
I can't seem to see it, maybe I'm just a lout!
Cause all that matters to me is the rhyme,
I don't seem to worry about all the time
That I waste in the day making up all this stuff,
I don't have a poker face, so I can't bluff!

 It's bad enough that you and I, can't find
Anybody else to to apply, what we've
Got is so sublime! We delve into the
Mysteries of slime! No matter the word
No matter Thought We give it all we are, and!
All that we've got! We can't fly, so we sing;
Hope we're not off key and that we ring!

Cause no matter what the time or the day,
We'll keep on making rhymes, that is our play!
You may have skills, like a champion, make me
Think I'm not cool cause I ain't got no mansion!
What is this place that you call sweet? I'm
Not about to throw my life away for some suite!

So go ahead, bling out your house and home,
Cause in the end you're gonna be all alone!
You be buying a dog, just to throw a bone!
Knowing all along that you've got to atone!

It doesn't matter to you or to me,
We've got rhymes and schemes,
We've got, poetry!

We here the bells, ringing fine!
While you work, please, drop us a line!
Please partake in our pleasantry,
We aren't just some petty peasantry!

Cause in the end I'm all alone, my heart
Is such a mess, and I'm trying to atone.
Such a stupid mess, stripping me to the bone!
Money doesn't matter much, as I've shone!

Walk on bye, don't you wave, I don't care much Its just another rave!
I'm staying here It's my brother's cave, I'll drink more beer Cause I'm just a slave! 
I'm not gonna pave, the way with gold, or with ice
No matter how you paint your far fetched Paradise!
It's just another part of life to me,
I'll sit here depressed, writing poetry.

If you think you can make me budge,
I'd suggest you bring on the fudge!
Cause in the end I'll be all alone,
I'm sitting here, trying to atone.
Everybody is making nice to me,
Everyone is taking on hypocrisy.

As I walk through the valley of my home,
I look in the mirror, realize that, I'm alone.
I find myself walking to the door,
There's a sight there that, I abhor,
On the mantle all my sins, they are writ!
They cause me to shake, to spin and to spit!

I foam at the mouth yeah, once or twice,
Before I call out, please Jesus Christ!
Save me from myself will you?
Can't you see that I love you!

I know that I've gone so far away,
But I'd come back to you, any-day,
Just take me back, forgive me,
I beg of you, I'll pay the fee!

And that's the end of this petty song, I
Hope that you I have come along the
Way's of understanding, so that we meet
Each other halfway and can do this feat.
Now take my hand, one's better than two,
We'll call out together, Jesus Hallelujah!

 

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Jury Duty

Honorable Judge. Members of the

Jury, I commend your actions.

That you have maintained tradition so as

To resist any who would so abet

This court from acting with the law; it is

Your duty to advocate the truth, to

Aid us in our need by giving to us

Your thorough and righteous decision.

Thank you. Soon you will go back to your room,

Where, assisted by what you have gleaned

From all of the evidence revealed,

Here, in this room of court, you will so come

To a decision, you will so to speak

Boost the man who here has a claim to that

Victory, that you as of yet have not

given, nor the man made clear. Forgive me

Your honor if I am not frank, I am,

Testing the waters. You see I do not

Condone the silence of this jury. Were

I in the presence of such a man as

Is here before me I would encourage

Him to stay strong. As you all have done

To my opponent. Your honor, I have

Poof to sustain this claim, but, before I

Reveal it to you I would finish

What I have started. Thank you. If you will

Excuse me, members of the jury, I

Shall ramble on for some time; you have no

Choice in the matter but to encourage

Me in my ramblings; for at the end

Of this discourse you will all be sent

To prison to sit next to the man you

Illegally endorse. Your honor, if

You do so please, I have not finished my

Testimony to the jury who must

Make their peace with God, before they may find

Favor with him; so as cast their vote in

A way that allows them to move forward;

Else they will all perish in their own lies.

Will you allow me to proceed? Or do

You need me to swear myself in? Thank you.

Now as I said, you endorse this man ,here;

My only question is to wonder why?

Why would you endorse a man who fosters

A new civil order that does not give

Precedence to these Americans here?

Yes, great Scott your honor I am aware

That I have been out of order some time;

Jonathan, the casket, if you please! Will

This, your honor, allow me further speech?

Or do you disprove of my goading the truth

Out of these men and women, who have so

Failed in their duty to help country,

Do patronize this court behind closed doors,

Promote the spell of evil that is hell,

And so provoke you by their insolence.

As you will soon see by the contents here

Revealed? Will you not let me speak? For

I do assure you, your honor, rest assured,

That when this casket is opened, I do

Not doubt that you will second my motion

To have them thrown into the brig for life!

Will you not strengthen your country by this?

Or will you support the taunts and jeers made

Behind your back in their private quarters,

And when they have made their decision, and

You overthrown, along with every man

Who holds the post, abide in shame when you

Did not act, but knew that you could? Can you

Bear the weight, that an entire nation

Stood here in this room today, to endure

Your petty silence! They that obey but

Do not agree with this egregious

Oversight of law, that causes them to

Suffer, yes, to suffer from your mistake;

All because you would not tolerate a

Lawyer to speak to the jury without

Proper guidelines! Open the casket, Jon.

Jury Duty, (C) Luke Bennette, March 2012

Love Taker

If you want to know why don't you ask him?

I can hardly tell you why he did it!

When I decided to abandon him

I did not know the act would leave him in

Such desolation! That he would commit

Himself to that piteous ditch suggests

I barely knew him at all. You, was I

So wrong to forsake his person that he

Should feel the need to rid himself of this

Life and so desert the army of

The living? Was I the captor of his

Heart that he should jilt the world of time

Still owed? I know my sin weighs heavily on me,

For great injury did I heap upon

Him by the abduction of his fair lass, 

But! on my life, I did not discard him

On some highway like a mindless manic;

You get me? That He should run trip and fall

To end his days in a silly ravine;

He was my friend, though I had lost sight

Of it when she came along, her long hair

Swaying back and forth, her hair tilted back

With just the hint of of desire; I sure

Made a mistake. What do you think of her?

Was it she, her disloyalty that led

Him to this, and not my heinous act? Yet

Why should he renounce himself for her while

There are still women to have him, are

Still walking in the daylight? They are not

So unhinged as is deaths door that he should

Find them unattractive. However much

I do contend with my conscience and fail

To overcome the dead weight of guilt, I,

I, am nothing when compared to the tears

She shed over his body. You tell me,

Was she so fond of him still when she left,

That she should weep for the man she rejected?

With only a day's separation? How,

How can this be that in but a day she

Left both he and I, in much the same way?

And you'll ask why I left her alone there,

Well, my guilt was turned to injurious wrath,

and her tears did turn my heart to hate;

For how could she love him so well when she

Professed such love for me? By her wailing

She had renounced me, I said,  I will be

Her lad no more, let her forsake me now

For that corpse she bemoans! Let her leave me!

And may she shun all of society

For the act of murder, for robbing that

Man of his senses; should she entrap me

As she did to him? Pluck from my heart the

Very keys to my soul? No! Let her rot,

For I have learned well not to kidnap those

That come willingly only to act the

Part of a dutiful wife! Did she not

Also speak of such things with him when she

Surrendered herself, body and soul, to

His impatient designs? Let her beg me

As she did to him, when last she did seize

The lifeline of another, snatched him from

Reason and common sense, that's what gets me!

That he loved her for so many days past,

As though a wife, only to be misled

In the end by a common whore! Try me,

I say let her try me, the way she did

Him; let her say whatever she wants, I

Say that no matter what she does she wont,

Shall not succeed in such begging! I'll snub

Her as I would any foe, and I will

Not relinquish; though she promise me the

World: Because you know what? Let me tell you,

She had eyes that sought to abduct me, like

Him, tried to make a slave of me: Until,

Right up until, she thinks that I'm cheap, and

Finds someone with greater ambition. So,

I left. My hearts now made of stone; my friend

Is in a ditch, and I must still atone.

Love Taker, (C) Luke Bennette, March 2012



Inexplicable

What is this upon my hand that I bear

So tenderly, with such loving care? Is

It not a mere piece of gold, was melded

And tended by the fold of smithies that do

Forge such stuff, and then formed into a ring?

Yes I would say to you, yes, it is: and

No. No, it is far more than a mere ring.

For by such a ring what am I to make

Of who I am or what I stand for? Oh,

What shall I say that will not partake in

Some weighty discussion! which I do not

Like in the least, for philosophers do

Tend to draw the thing out without making

The true points come alive! And if I am

To suggest, and I do confess myself

Prone to do so when time allows, that my

Ring represents all that I am and will

Be, then I should stamp upon my head some

Token of my beliefs as well: for such

Is the extreme notion that my ring does

Represent to those that fail to see.

Still you are here, and willing to sit and

So listen, to hear of my tale. Yes.

Since I see you are truly keen to know

Of the hidden meaning behind the thing

I shall tell you, of the day my wife gave

Me this golden ring. A day not unlike this,

Clouds did roll across the abyss of the

Sky; yet as high as they were they could not

Blot out the sun that shone upon my face,

Nor could they a single moment replace

The thoughts that I bore at that time. I was

Standing here, not far from where you are now,

And as I turned my head the better to

See the reason behind the noise I then

Heard, my jaw dropped two feet. I saw glory

Parading before me, unraveled light,

For sure that was what they had seen a short

Moment ago that had caused men to go

Limp in the face, for women to sigh; such

A presence did I see before me, as

I have never felt unto this day since

She passed. Yet regardless of this, at long

Last the one being truly made for me was

Before my eyes, and would not leave me. Her

Hair tied back in strings of Lilly White,

Her eyes the color of mud; ha! you thought

That I was to say stars, or sapphires,

Diamonds, rubies, emeralds, heaven no!

No, she had the most warlike of natures;

Such colors would not have suited her, no,

They would not have matched her spirit of clay,

That spirit that she had in abundance,

That stuck onto me like an adhesive,

Changed my very essence and hers too,

Molded us until we resembled some

Thing newly made from God's imaginings.

So much so had she conquered me through those

Brown eyes. Ah, they were not as some men would

Say mere duds that disqualified her; for

What is a woman that you should judge her

Alone by the skin and bone that she bears?

By her bare skin alone she is fair, so

Very very fair to behold, I admit!

But by that alone love would be called lust!

Though such desire ought to be present

You cannot survive on it alone; fire

Goes out without sustenance to grow on.

But to press on, I shall say so much more.

I have already spoken of her core,

Warlike Athena she was to me, yet

Tender face that became no other soul

So well as she did at that hour. Now,

For her body, it was made of bronze, her

Skin made fair by the color of the moon;

For she was not as I am, peach skin, no!

No, nature had procured for me a love

So heavenly that her legs, her arms, her

hands, her firm belly, and most lovely chest,

Were all the color of dirt painted red

By sunset: though that might seem strange to some,

It was for me like finding the perfect

Wine. Yes. So! So, grand she appeared to me

That for a moment that seemed to stretch

On an eternity was I caught up.

Yet strangely, and I scarce remember how,

The sight of my love shifted, appeared to

Have moved without moving. Now next to me.

I remember, she told me, that I was

Embarrassing her by my gaping mouth.

I had after all never seen, before

This moment, how deep was the well that

I would soon join.  But, I told her that she

Need only take my hand and I would so

Remedy that fear inside her heart. I

Thought she'd mock my love for sure. Ah but then!

Can you believe it? her hand took mine, and

That terrible beauty of which I spoke

Became mingled with the fluttering wind;

Like an parched bird caught up in song;

Though he be lacking water he must sing

Out the expression of what he sees, yes,

Exactly so! So she was to me, and, 

Despite her distress she smiled. Not

That smile that most brides have, no, no! Oh

No! She smiled through her eyes: her lips were

still, slightly parted, to express the same

Feeling I had felt moments before. Such

A feeling! as though I had won over

Her very soul, as she had mine. Then, well,

We were, if you can believe, interrupted;

By the priest. Sometimes I think him to be

Jealous of what we had, is that so bad?

Now, to explain the parts that came after;

Yet shall I compare such parts with you who

Have not experienced them? Cannot? For

How can I, who have seen the light break through

The veil of mine own inferior

Intellect so as to make clear what was

Occurring that instant of eternal

Life, speak my piece of mind? No, how can I

To the one who has not? Unless I have

Some power to sway another's mind, so

As to crack the vault of his heart and so

Reveal to him the hidden power

Of such a wondrous union by force! No,

For even had I the power to give

You the essence of that moment, I'd not

For all the world ruin it for you. Such

Is the power of what I have bought through

The commitment I made that day. Now

Gone; lost to the wind, dust in the ground, mud....

I do not mean to keep you in the dark

But if you think that you can understand

Then say so, do with your speech of me bid

That moment of bliss for which I have no words!

And in a many paged book I will write

Out for you the feeling then impressed on

My soul.

Though I warn you, it will take a full

Eternity of your time. So will my ring

Then be explained, your curiosity

Then sated. But if you will take an old

Mans advice, find a girl yourself. Do then

Take her through the very steps I have made.

Then what would take years to understand in

A book, shall be instantly understood.

When she gives you a single look.