Keeper

[Pendragon]

KEEPER

He can hear the roar
as he descends the dark stairway,
and the soot-filled air
and the sulfurous smell of brimstone
let him know that his enemy is still there.
He grasps the suddenly vanishing chain,
braces his feet against a stone,
and strains with all his powerful shoulders
to keep the beast from escaping;
or, at the very least,
to keep the collateral damage to a minimum.
Finally, the struggle ceases.
The Dragon returns to its uneasy slumber.
The Keeper shakes his head.
"What?", he asks himself,
Do I have to show for my years of labor
in containment of this monster,
but an nigh-broken, almost useless back,
a troubled mind full of horrific visions,
and blisters the size of Buicks
on every gnarled, oft-broken finger?

DL Harris
© 3/12/01

[Poppy]

KEEPER

He can hear the roar
as he descends the dark stairway,
and the soot-filled air
and the sulfurous smell of brimstone
let him know that his enemy is still there.
He grasps the suddenly vanishing chain,
braces his feet against a stone,
and strains with all his powerful shoulders
to keep the beast from escaping;
or, at the very least,
to keep the collateral damage to a minimum.
Finally, the struggle ceases.
The Dragon returns to its uneasy slumber.
The Keeper shakes his head.
"What?", he asks himself,
Do I have to show for my years of labor
in containment of this monster,
but an nigh-broken, almost useless back,
a troubled mind full of horrific visions,
and blisters the size of Buicks
on every gnarled, oft-broken finger?

DL Harris
© 3/12/01




Very Nice Pen.....I actually know a building maintenance man I intend to show this to. He has to keep that dang boiler in the basement going and he will appreciate this...:thumbs_up
Poppy

[ampoule]

Pen, this was wonderful. It reminds me so much of a darling story that I read for my students, Harry and the Terrible Whatzit.
Through your poem I could hear the clanging, smell the odors....and I have bandaids dear Pen, I have bandaids.

[Pendragon]

Thank you Poppy and Amp. Believe it or not, I am well acquainted with boilers, Poppy, having worked through high school as a janitor, and then having to hand feed the one at the factory when the feeder belt when down for a while. Not the subject here, but you hand-feed one, and you will get the feeling you are as close to a dragon as you will ever get. Hot, smells horrible, and will give you first degree burns (sunburn).

Ah, Amp, always looking out for me. I think you caught the meaning well. I wrote this more when the dragon was harder to contain. The finger's broke playing basketball before the illness. Love to be able to play again! Too big to move that gracefully now!

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l108/AbsalomKane/Four/Adios.gif

[PrinceMyshkin]

It was the


blisters the size of Buicks
on every gnarled, oft-broken finger?

DL Harris
© 3/12/01

that really nailed this thing down for me! Something about the contrast between those mythic details and the homeliness of those Buick-sized blisters!

And, just in case you were tempted to do so, my felicitation for NOT having gone for what would have been the excessively chummy "blisters the size of Hummers" or SUVs.

[Chortle]

i like it, there is a certain resigned air to the poem, especially at the end, it makes you understand that even though the keeper is questioning his job now, he will return to it without complaint in the morning. well played

[Poppy]

Thank you Poppy and Amp. Believe it or not, I am well acquainted with boilers, Poppy, having worked through high school as a janitor, and then having to hand feed the one at the factory when the feeder belt when down for a while. Not the subject here, but you hand-feed one, and you will get the feeling you are as close to a dragon as you will ever get. Hot, smells horrible, and will give you first degree burns (sunburn).


http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l108/AbsalomKane/Four/Adios.gif

Pen, I knew it was much deeper than an old boiler, but its the first analogy I thought of. Dale, the maintenance guy just recently restarted the boiler in my office building and he will complain about dealing with it on a daily basis.

[blazeofglory]

KEEPER

He can hear the roar
as he descends the dark stairway,
and the soot-filled air
and the sulfurous smell of brimstone
let him know that his enemy is still there.
He grasps the suddenly vanishing chain,
braces his feet against a stone,
and strains with all his powerful shoulders
to keep the beast from escaping;
or, at the very least,
to keep the collateral damage to a minimum.
Finally, the struggle ceases.
The Dragon returns to its uneasy slumber.
The Keeper shakes his head.
"What?", he asks himself,
Do I have to show for my years of labor
in containment of this monster,
but an nigh-broken, almost useless back,
a troubled mind full of horrific visions,
and blisters the size of Buicks
on every gnarled, oft-broken finger?

DL Harris
© 3/12/01

Ineed you seem to have reflected war moods one goes, and it relflects deeper and deeper realms of how war goes on.

[blazeofglory]

KEEPER

He can hear the roar
as he descends the dark stairway,
and the soot-filled air
and the sulfurous smell of brimstone
let him know that his enemy is still there.
He grasps the suddenly vanishing chain,
braces his feet against a stone,
and strains with all his powerful shoulders
to keep the beast from escaping;
or, at the very least,
to keep the collateral damage to a minimum.
Finally, the struggle ceases.
The Dragon returns to its uneasy slumber.
The Keeper shakes his head.
"What?", he asks himself,
Do I have to show for my years of labor
in containment of this monster,
but an nigh-broken, almost useless back,
a troubled mind full of horrific visions,
and blisters the size of Buicks
on every gnarled, oft-broken finger?

DL Harris
© 3/12/01

This indeed transport us to a world of war. It seems you have already been there writing out of the expereinces you have undergone.

[NikolaiI]

Wow, just wow, Dale. :-)