I, NPC
Follow me, everybody! I’ve got a plan!
You see, there’s no nobody who’s ever existed, like me,
And we’re going to stop the #BadOrangeMan!
He has no place in our democracy!
I’m outraged at the things I see on TV!
So I will ban all the things that offend me!
In a sea of many protesters,
It is my signs that my enemies will see! Reeeeee!
The world, they say, can never truly be fixed—
But there’s never been anyone on Earth like me!
#Sexism #Racism #Homophobia #Resist
My lone voice parts the waters of the sea!
And at the end of the day, I will sit down and say,
You cannot judge me: I am not just an NPC!
Luna, She’s a Crooner
Luna, she’s a crooner,
And she drops down from above the stage,
Wears a sparkling nightdress
Sings, later, drinks claret,
Watches the world from above
Her man, the Man in the Moon,
Wears sunglasses—his brother,
The Sun, wears nightshades
And he goes out in his nightcap,
Strokes his beard, listens to rock n’ roll.
Luna, she’s a crooner,
Sings to her Man in the Moon all night,
Entwines arms, as they drink their claret together,
Swoons on drunken happiness
‘Til her dress turns blue
‘Til their kisses fade to laughter,
‘til the laughter turns to quiet stillness
and then the morning comes.
Gray Old Witch
Gray old witch
Fixes you with her
One-eyed stare
Looks at you through a tangle
Of uncombed hair,
Casts her spells on the beach
Gray old witch
Tells time on her tattoos
Blows smoke from her nose
Knows how to scare the children
Plays blues in the evenings
Lights the candles
Drops the blood. Cackles.
Dido of the Flames
Queen, wanderer, I created
Carthage, a city of renown
I was in exile, seeking refuge
And Iarbus would make me his wife
If I would let him give me that crown
But I would not betray my heart
With its memories of Sychaeus, my beloved
And then of Aeneus—
What is flesh, to earthly promise?
And so I placed the curse of
Endless war upon Carthage and Troy
Seized all possessions into a pile,
Tossed onto it my joys
I seized a sword, and created of my love, a pyre
Cut my own fated life-cord and fell
Consumed by fire.
***
“Luna, She’s a Crooner,” “Gray Old Witch,” and “Dido of the Flames” are excerpts from Leslie D. Soule’s new poetry chapbook, My Mentor, Death. You can purchase the book from Terror House Press here.
Leslie D. Soule is a fantasy and sci-fi author from Sacramento, California. She has an M.A. in English and is currently working on the final book of her fantasy series, The Fallenwood Chronicles. Leslie is also the author of My Mentor, Death and Falling Through the World, available from Terror House Press.
