Declan McHenry - Carthage: Moments of Revelation

There are places we walk into <br />eyes shut, and finding revelation, <br />eyes open, we walk out. <br /> <br />In fleeting moments, memory <br />in fragments of opportunity <br />in eyes, a smile, a turn of phrase; <br />re-kindles feeling. <br /> <br />Then, three glasses in, <br />(the New You?) <br />gives forth one opinion. <br />No ears. No listening. No debate.. <br />Your way is the only way. <br />I will be yours. <br />Your demands. <br />Your threats. <br />And you are surprised I say no. <br /> <br />It is a strange mindset, <br />denied what it wants, <br />destroys what it wants <br />and damages anything associated. <br /> <br />It is a strange mindset <br />that throws privacy to the voyeurs. <br />Is their approval so important? <br />Is their support so vital? <br />What do they gain in seeing this pain? <br />It is not just my life you paint, <br />and not just mine you defame. <br /> <br />There are places we are driven to, <br />hearts open, and places the mob rule <br />that, heart closed, we are driven from. <br /> <br />It seems, <br />I am your Carthage. <br />with your marshalled allies <br />(oh so well versed in both sides - not!) <br />you will undermine my walls, <br />erase my works, my visions; <br />You will inhabit my places, my spaces, <br />in pursuit of the innocent. <br />You will ensure no welcome awaits. <br />You will salt the fields <br />so nothing grows here. <br />Yet, even then <br />Carthage will remain. <br /> <br />When all else is gone, <br />Carthage remains.<br /><br />Declan McHenry<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/carthage-2/