For sticky greedy fingers – 55 words

· by · in ballad, poetry. ·


The poppies flew on Flanders fields
see ghosts of soldiers prancing
once sacrificed like guinea pigs
for national financing
their spirits flew on gossamer
like butterflies were dancing
the sickly smell of asphodel
on Hades’ meadows lingers
here restless sooty angels dwell
and sirens are the singers
remember all our sacrifice
for sticky greedy fingers

From wikimedia

From wikimedia


Linked to G-mans 55 words
—
February 21, 2014

16 responses to “For sticky greedy fingers – 55 words”

  3. I love the allusions to classical myths, Björn [one of our children is named after just such a myth]; it works really well for this (anti-)war poem. I hope the world never forgets, as it lurches forward, the sacrifices of all the families in WWI (not to mention any war). Good luck on the 55-word challenge; awesome submission!

  6. Bjorn…
    Not too many 55’s written about The Great War.
    I Loved It! it’s such a distant and forgotten subject matter.
    Maybe this was the 55 to end all 55’s eh?
    Thank you so much for this fantastic piece of creativity
    Please join us again and again…Have a Kick Ass Week-End

  7. The rhyme and assonance in this really emphasize the loss, and the harsh results of politics and power.

  13. Just exquisite, Bjorn–taking a very familiar trope and reworking it in a very original and melodious way, the music making the bitterness all the more apparent. I especially love the allusion to asphodel.

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