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Open Poetry #27
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Peter J Marcroft
Member
since 2003-02-02
Posts 265
York, England

0 posted 2003-07-03 09:04 AM



I have no friends, I don't need them,
I place my trust, in the hand of doom,
My hand, a destructive bedlam,
And my enemies are cast in a stone tomb

A stranger, they never look to my eyes,
They never know what they may hide,
Viscous rumours, all of them lies,
Crush my reputation, like an angry tide

Always on the move, I remain in no place,
An unwanted entity, the lonely rover,
Danger is all I get, it is what I must face,
As I walk these dusty plains, over and over

I look to the only friend I have,
Cold as ice and stronger than steel,
Hostility, my companion, for this path,
They do not care the pain I feel

It is hard to be an outlaw, cast out,
How would you feel if you were hated?
The sins of the past, possess great clout,
They scare enemies, and on me they have grated

Yet my eyes are despair to those who oppose me,
When the high sun rises and the weed rolls,
An exchange of gunfire, another soul flees,
While in the distance a great bell tolls

This is life for me, empty and blooded,
No sons do I sire, nor wife do I take,
Rage bottled up, like a dammed river flooded,
And the hearts of men, my bullets stake

Always hated, yet so desired,
They do not care how my life will end,
For every shot that I have fired,
I will carve a dark legend

A thing told for many years,
The slayer in the dust,
Always fuelling latent fears,
Of another coming bloodlust

Guns remain loaded, blood again falls,
Something about these barrels, makes men strong,
Hold one and suddenly, rage loudly calls,
And for death, these young men long

This is what life here is for,
Where law of the gun, is put to the test,
The best of them they call the outlaw,
Out here, in the dusty, wild west...

© Copyright 2003 Peter J Marcroft - All Rights Reserved
icebox
Member Elite
since 2003-05-03
Posts 4383
in the shadows
1 posted 2003-07-03 12:16 PM


"Something about these barrels, makes men strong,
                                         Hold one and suddenly, rage loudly calls,"

I can not agree; holding a gun doesn't make a person a man any more than holding a hammer makes a person a carpenter.

This is an interesting poem which raises complex issues of self awareness.

Having lived in an armed society, two cliches come to mind:  to live outside the law, you must be honest; and, to survive in an armed society, you must be polite.

To empower weapons with an animate spirit is poetically interesting, but only as a metaphor.

Peter J Marcroft
Member
since 2003-02-02
Posts 265
York, England
2 posted 2003-07-03 12:28 PM


The line about the strength of guns and men is not  literal it is a metaphor, a metaphor for how men suddenly become these unstoppable killing machines.  

But your fedback is useful and i appreciate it.

passing shadows
Member Empyrean
since 1999-08-26
Posts 45577
displaced
3 posted 2003-07-03 12:36 PM


I would have to agree with icebox here

I had a gun in my profession once, because of depression and certain other events/people in my life at the time, I turned the gun back in...just figured it was best to do.

Still, some nights when the wind slams the screen or when I watch the television shows about criminals and what people are capable of doing, I wish I had the gun back.

[This message has been edited by passing shadows (07-03-2003 12:37 PM).]

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navwin » Archives » Open Poetry #27 » The outlaw (Period piece, reposted from open poetry #24)

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