Before we damned asbestos, she was
a loyal citizen her lion roar was smoke and mirrors
and electro-shock therapy was a simple
cure for her less than Vogue appearance.
Simply said, we coped with breath of fire,
and numbed ourselves to lion’s roar and serpent’s hiss.
For sure her bleat of goat at 6 AM was slightly worse
than the alarm clock, but as a neighbor
she was great and helped to light the barbecue.
We dated for a while, and though people found it
odd, thought they could see attraction growing
through asbestos walls. But when the ban came
through, and legislation worked its legal ways
and cancerogenic walls were gone we had
to ostracize chimeras from the neighborhood.
She left us, and I can swear it was the first time
ever, that I’ve seen a serpent weep. We let her find
her way into the labyrinth of Crete, and maybe
(at least I hope it’s so) she now has found a
a Minotaur to mate within the maze.
Picture Isadora Gruye
—-
May 31, 2017
Björn Rudbergs writings 
Progress squeezes tears out of the toughest of us. I really hope the Minotaur is on a mating mood and doesn’t mind sharing his labyrinth–they would certainly make some interesting babies.
Love how you combined the two prompts.
I love the matter-of-fact humourous slant to your words Björn.
I do so hope she has found love in Crete.
Anna :o]
So… this was a “con” stance on asbestos? 🙂 I was hoping for a picture of her!
All joking aside, I found this highly enjoyable and highly creative. You, sir, are an artist.
A modern tale….and I love the hopeful ending.
Humorous. But if one thinks about it, the labyrinth is real.
Nice, Luv your empathy and goodwill
Much love…
Eerie to think chimeras and Minotaurs still exist somewhere and will slither out someday!
Working in a design office many years ago the most regular traveller to visit was the asbestos man! They are still discovering imported materials with asbestos content let’s hope it is all sent back and not disposed of here.
‘we had to ostracize chimeras from the neighborhood’ is a wonderful line
Bad for health, it had to happen despite strong objections from those financially affected. Great humor stance Bjorn!
Hank
Asbestos. May she rest in peace. Or not!
This funny and surprising. My mind makes a picture of two working at desks with a wall of asbestos between them, unaware of it until it comes down.
A delightful write! I especially liked the sympathy you show for the serpent. Most are so afraid of snakes, it is hard to think that she might have feelings, too.
Hopefully she does find love, but acceptance would be wonderful on its own.
This was a delightful read and the mythic allusions were the very best part.
Elizabeth
OK… 🙂
Enjoyed reading this. Love the images, the mythology mix, the serpent’s tears. You sir, have a wonderful imagination and talent.
Another fine poem.
A wonderful Seussian ~ taken to the next level ~ flight of fancy.
Always, always an interesting take.
Your mind is a brilliant, interesting place….I always enjoy the peek inside and mythology is just an added bonus 🙂
Oh, poor chimera! Who knew she was so attached to asbestos? I always like to think the minotaur survived the savage attack from Theseus, and now am happy to picture him with a lovely new friend and companion, and perhaps lover.
Finally accepted and she was forced to leave. Poor Chimera. From what little I know of the Chimera, I’d say the Minotaur will find anything but love!
Excellent combination of prompts! I see we picked the same photo.
clever use of the prompts and as always a great piece of writing Bjorn
Made me smile, 🙂 Bjorn. There is bound to be more “its” coming out soon.
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Hiya Bjorn! So happy to see you gave this prompt a chance and many apologies for the delayed response. I really like what you’ve done here. The poem and tone of narrator has an undercurrent of danger, much like the photo, while also being slightly whimsical. That is a hard balance to strike, but you struck it well, my friend. Thanks for posting to the out of standard and viva la!