Weary, I schlep this weight and regret my fate
Teary, I wept so late, so inept my state
Bear the boulder ‘pon my shoulder
Prop the stack upon my back
Wince the shackles ‘pon my ankles
Must go forward
Yet thrusted toward
A rusted sword
My just reward
Yet as I sauntered, crushed and lonely
The scale was altered thus upon me.
As the boulder ‘gan to lift, so the pack began to shift
Now did a beam of wood exist, now locked in would I resist?
I lurched forward despite my will
Felt the pull that shook my still
Broke the shackles ‘pon my heel
Awoke the tears, they start to spill
I look over now
I see how
You bear the beam with me
How you bear the load and how
I can hardly notice now
Indeed your yoke is easy
Indeed your burden’s light
So I take these gifts upon me
And my soul finds rest this night.
Lovely work, Mr. Speight! -EB
Thanks, Eric!
What I know about poetry would fit in a thimble, but I know what I like. And I like this. Kudos for your use of the Yiddish, “schelp!”
I also noticed the—perhaps unintentional—nods to Springsteen (boulder/shoulder) and Poe (the meter of the fourth stanza). Some very identifiable thoughts expressed most eloquently here. Thanks for this.
What I know about poetry would fit in a thimble, but I know what I like. And I like this. Kudos for your use of the Yiddish, schelp! I also noticed your—perhaps unintentional—nods to Springsteen (boulder/shoulder) and Poe (the meter of the fourth stanza). Some very relatable thoughts expressed most eloquently here. Thanks for this.
Thanks, Grant! You know my Bruce nod was unintentional. 😆 But it does speak to creativity being stacked on top of past things, including subconscious things in our head, which could’ve very well been from my listening to Blinded by the Lights 1,000 times in my life!
100%. I’m only sorry that your exposure to “Blinded by the Light” was through Manfred Mann’s inferior version. If you get a chance, try Bruce’s original: https://open.spotify.com/track/1VyDQtfhX6gqhWTGU7Oe8X?si=057fcda0bf9341a3