The dragon of midnight
tiptoed
through bric-a-brac left,
through pockmarks on concrete
through ember of graphite
through body and mind;
while black as the rain,
he stared through my dreams
with lollipop eyes
green as the tick-tack decay
of my monitored sleep.
measuring half-times too long
for survival.
When my rashes expanded
to wounds and crimsoned my bedsheets.
I knew that the dragon
had told me of truths
our ominous party denied me to know.
But still
on the fields of Pripyat
a doe and her kid
grow fat from the grass we have banned.
The Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed with the Sun by William Blake
Linked to my own post on radiation fears and Chernobyl at toads. Also linked to the Fireblossom wordlist at toads.
Linking to Poetry Pantry
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June 29, 2019
Björn Rudbergs writings 
“The dragon of midnight” is perfect for what you are describing, as are the described fallout. “he stared through my dreams with lollipop eyes green as the tick-tack decay of my monitored sleep”. Bjorn, how you describe this as a dream that visits you with the message resonates with cosmic vibrations. The haunting “end”…
There is hope in the doe and her kid growing fat from the grass. A thought-provoking poem – and prompt – Bjorn. I especially loved the poem you included in the prompt – it is magical.
dragon with lollipop eyes is quite a contrast
I remember this illustration from Harris’s book, Red Dragon. How wonderful that that doe and her fawn survived and are growing fat.
I do like that it is the dragon that tells truths! Hoping it will speak them loudly and clearly!
Some secrets aren’t worth the cost of aquiring. For humanity’s folly, let’s hope that this is the last time, we ever with our “God-like” powers. Knowing, there’ll be no other next time.
“the grass we have banned”. Oh yes, oh yes!
Greed, war, power how can we expect to live in a peacable kingdom when we don’t know what that means?
Your proximity to the disaster zone has produced the most outstanding pieces of writing regarding the topic of nuclear fallout. You have spoken in a contemporary voice of a disaster that shook the world out of its lethargy.. but I fear the message is needed again right now, as lethargy has a way of creeping back. The contrast between the fearful dragon and innocent doe makes this all the more thought-provoking.
What a magical poem
This is incredibly penned, Bjorn! ❤ Such strong imagery here especially; “while black as the rain, he stared through my dreams with lollipop eyes green as the tick-tack decay of my monitored sleep. measuring half-times too long for survival.” 😊
Very apocalyptic. Perhaps I’m reading it wrong, but I thought the doe and her kid would be growing fat on something which would eventually make them sick, so I saw it as a sinister rather than positive image.
Actually most of us would probably handle radiation quite well… and among animals death and decease is such a large part of the the natural world. So around Chernobyl wildlife thrives showing that for them humans are worse than the downfall.
There is a restlessness of sleep as I enter this nightmare. I worry about the world and talks of nuclear arms is quite frightening. I hope we never see a day where the rain is black.
This poem is so ominous, though it speaks of what has already happened. Denial is one of my strongest psychological defenses thus I’ve tended to put this terrifying possibility way in the back of my mind. Your poem slapped me into reality. Excellent writing Bjorn!
I’m figuring you watched the fantastic mini-series “Chernobyl”, as I did, though I had to look away from the parts about the poor stray dos. I couldn’t handle that. When the worker looks down into the burning core, it was like a vision of hell itself and maybe that’s what is unleashed when this stuff goes wrong. It seems too dangerous to fool with, if you ask me.
I have actually not seen Chernobyl (don’t have HBO) but I have read so much about it, and I also lived with the fear when it happened. All the images and the terror of radiation poisoning is all too real for a physicist
I like the dark faerie tale bordering on horror story feel of this. It reminds me a little of one of my favorite movies, Pan’s Labyrinth. Nuclear power does have a magical feel to it, doesn’t it? But like in those old tales, you need to be mindful of the menace hidden under a coating of gingerbread.
Oh yes, deliciously dark and menacing Bjorn! Very cool!
The contrasts are awesome doe and dragon. It’s very dark but the disaster was horrible
This is a poem for nightmares, the cottage of witch devouring the village.
I grew up in the fifties when nuclear war was the lead story of the day. People build bomb shelters. And school children were timed on fast they could ran home in the event of an attack. Consequently THIS is my waking nightmare. You have put pen-to-paper here in an eloquent, albeit chillingly impactful, way. The piece is stunning.
You have done an amazing job with the prompts, as always.
Many of the things I write are affected by being a Cold War kid. The omnipresent fear of being nuked into oblivion during childhood definitely had an influence on my writing and indeed on the way I have lived.
Well, that was interesting…
This dream-like description is apt and perfect in describing the fall out. The hope at the end is perfect.
Image and words go so well together. I can’t stop seeing those “lollipop” eyes in my head, picturing what made them so, what they will see (or not).
this reads like a gothic horror tale, but a nuclear calamity always is. awesome write, very gripping.
the doe & her kid growing fat might not be a good thing because of possible mutation?
We need more extinct animals to tell us the truth from their perspective. Innocent beings are led astray by the propaganda spewed out by those in power and control. Thank you, Bjorn, for the prompt. Finally, I feel sorry for those still living in Pripyat and the other more rural affected areas.
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Your poem spoke of a multi-leveled nightmare.