Sunday, January 28, 2007

dream

a child dreams of a kingdom fallen on hard times...
he flies over streets overgrown with trees.

a castle sitting alone on a hill,
holding a king gone senile with age.

landing in the courtyard he spies a man.
im mistah twist he says.

whats happened here? asked the boy dreamer.
heres the t'ing says the twist.

once this was a great land.
the king made a deal with the land.
give me workers and soldiers a plenty he asked the king did.
and i will keep you safe from all harm.
the land liked that it did.

so up came the men of hollow.
not real men...but stronger than any ten they were.
they did all the king asked em too.
and more.

this kingdom stretched over lands and lakes.
people came to build and borrow.

it was a good time indeedy.

what happened? asked the boy dreamer.
well thats the thing aint it, responded the twist.

the king fergot his bargains with the lands,
he lost his hollow men and with them gone...
he dun lost his mind as well.

so now he looks constantly for what he lost...
even though he dont know what that is any more.

the boy thought that sad...
and mistah twist agreed likely it was.

so in the way of dreams the boy called out to the lost men...

hollow hollow men of old
come out come out of the cold
return return hallow men
to do as you are told

silence stilled in the air
mistah twist just grinned.

then a thump was heard
and another
and again

footsteps came
footsteps by the tens
by the hundreds.

tall they were
they marched and stomped
until the very ground shook with them all

up from the ground and down from the trees
they came as summoned.
to see the king for commands

finding the king forlorn and filthy they waited.
mistah twist holding the old king up
the king looked dazely about..
and said...

make it all as it was...
and the hallow men turned and went to work

fixing and mending
cleaning and cooking
tailoring and building

the king grew strong again
but not as he had been
he grew not to be forgetful
or honest as he had been
he grew mean and vengeful

power was his again and he meant to use it
use it until there was nothing left.

the boy dreamer found mistah twist
playing ten pins in the lost streets below the castle keep.

why does the king not use the men wisely?
asked the dreamer boy.
why do you think they left in the first place?
aswered mistah twist.

the dreaming boy knew no answer to that
for the sun was slowly rising
over the horizon of him home
dreaming was almost over
for tonight.

hallow men hallow men
fall to sleep
dream again dream again
of the land that you keep

end and awake now.