Here We Are

Carousel? Too genteel.
Merry go-round? Definitely not.

Music profoundly distorted.
Charged, dissonant, cacophonous.
Maniac spraypainted stallion,
nostrils flared, madly races.
Those in front? He pushes on.
Crazed, dazed followers?
Cold steel pole spines
pierce once-feeling hearts.
They gallop blindly in his tracks.
Up. Down. Up. Down. Round and round.
Reality beyond ignored,
blurred by gullibility and greed.
Hands reach out to slow the pace.
Severed bloody limbs litter ground.

Where is the carousel beloved by all,
once built by craftsmen’s hands?
What happened to the rules?
Timed tickets. All can ride.
Adults protect the way for young.
Old-timer carnival buskers grow hoarse.
Clown make-up drips real tears.
And here we are.

Written for Open Link Night (OLN) at dVerse, the virtual pub for poets around the globe. Bjorn in Stockholm, Sweden is hosting, inviting folks to post one poem of their choosing. He also provides an optional prompt. Photo from Pixabay.com

14 thoughts on “Here We Are

    • lillian's avatar lillian February 13, 2025 / 3:15 pm

      Sadly, yes. It just keeps getting worse and worse. USAID gone….and #47 ignoring the rulings of judges. RFK Jr. approved as Secretary of Health….with only one Republican voting against: Senator Mitch McConnell a POLIO survivor. I’m posting a Fact of the Day on my FB account….I just feel I need to do something. It is horiffic.

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      • Björn Rudberg (brudberg)'s avatar Björn Rudberg (brudberg) February 13, 2025 / 3:17 pm

        I fear that it will soon be the world against the US. Some of the changes are so bad it seems like he only want to destroy everything.

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      • lillian's avatar lillian February 13, 2025 / 3:20 pm

        I sure don’t want to “like” you second response. So will write here. You are exactly right. We have lost all credibility…..except it seems, with Putin. To go against Ukraine joining NATO? To slap the tariffs on….to have the gall to suggest Canada be a 51st state? And so much of what he’s doing is illegal – but he does it anyway. What he’s doing will harm us for many many years to come.

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  1. Ain - UA's avatar Ain February 13, 2025 / 3:13 pm

    Blimey…as they used to say in blighty….the carnage is expressed just right…the stallion run amok……the severed limbs…..poetry punching like that is really refreshing…as strong as it is…

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    • lillian's avatar lillian February 13, 2025 / 3:17 pm

      Did you know Glenn B? He was a long time contributor to dVerse. Died a number of years ago. His posts were hard hitting and did not mince words. I think he would have liked this post.

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      • Ain - UA's avatar Ain February 13, 2025 / 3:21 pm

        Oh…..years ago I remember Glennm such nice words from him, if I remember…..there is nothing worse than holding back in verse I think, and writing flowerpot stuff. I learn a lot here and did from your poetry tonight.

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  2. sanaarizvi's avatar sanaarizvi February 13, 2025 / 4:18 pm

    “Reality beyond ignored, blurred by gullibility and greed.” Yes, sadly this is the current political scene right now. It’s a nightmare.

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  3. kim881's avatar kim881 February 14, 2025 / 3:23 am

    Lill, I think it’s more helter skelter at the moment, and turning into a bumper-car crash. You’ve captured the mayhem so well in the poem, Lill, expressed what we’re all thinking. He is a ‘maniac spraypainted stallion’.

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  4. rothpoetry's avatar rothpoetry February 14, 2025 / 5:30 pm

    The carousal is a wonderful metaphor for what is going on these days, Lillian! Perhaps we need a Batman to counter the Joker and the Penguin! :>)

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  5. Frewin55's avatar Frewin55 February 15, 2025 / 10:58 am

    Politics wrapped up in such a poetic metaphor – great work Lillian…

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  6. merrildsmith's avatar merrildsmith February 15, 2025 / 2:59 pm

    I think we’ve fallen off the carousel horses and into the funhouse mirrors with killer clowns lurking.

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  7. crazy4yarn2's avatar crazy4yarn2 February 17, 2025 / 8:04 pm

    Lillian, you outdid yourself with this one!

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  8. paeansunplugged's avatar paeansunplugged February 18, 2025 / 10:37 am

    What a perfect metaphor, Lillian! It seems the world has been railroaded by maniacs on the loose.

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