dead man gets out a bottle of wine, one he had given up when he was alive
when he was alive he was more dead, shunning wine and fine dine
dead man takes a swig, grimaces and spits it out at his own feet
his feet feel so heavy, he had walked miles and miles before his final sleep
dead man is thinking, what is he thinking? OMG, elves are sooo 2009!
that was the year he died, elves carried his body, buried him in a hole
dead man throws away the empty bottle, picks another to drink all night
he doesn't wish to remember how his mind triumphed over his desires,
dead man plans to drink as long as he wants, no one can stop him
death was a welcome diversion, and where have the elves gone?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Also check out dead man and his shoe painting
Interesting take on the prompt!
ReplyDeleteDeath is the ultimate diversion, isn't it?
Oh Gautami, we seem to be on the same wavelength. I did another Dead Woman poem as well. And mine is also about keeping oneself, even beyond what might appear to be dying. Thanks for this one,
ReplyDeleteElizabeth
elves did the burying...interesting!
ReplyDeleteBottled death? What a market that might have?! LOL :)
ReplyDeleteYou and Elizabeth ARE telepathic. Amazingly sublime takes, both of you. Death in this season of light makes sense. Perhaps it's the slow succumbing of the earth to winter, or maybe it's just the elves!
ReplyDeleteGreat work. Amy
That was such an unusual style. Works, though ;-) Loved how the elves buried him.
ReplyDeletevery interesting take - I have yet to write a 'dead man' poem, although the form intrigues me...
ReplyDeleteInteresting...and a really unique rhythm.
ReplyDelete=)
Lovely, thought-provoking and an interesting use of the prompt.
ReplyDelete"when he was alive he was more dead"
Does this indicate we should eat, drink and be merry while alive?
Let's enjoy every minute!
I love that the elves come into and out of this piece, and the related shifts in tone. This is very profound and enticing. xo
ReplyDeleteI have never heard of dead man or dead woman poems. My first time reading one. He's sort of like a Zombie.Interesting how you incorporated the elves into this dead man poem. ~Ames
ReplyDeleteyeah, what Ames said ... this was an interesting and unexpected mixture of the dead man and elves...
ReplyDeleteThis dead man prompt seems to be taking everyone in the most unexpected directions!
ReplyDeletehe doesn't wish to remember how his mind triumphed over his desires
ReplyDeleteOne of the saddest lines I've ever read. I love it! :)
There is no end to what the dead man will do or say. :-)
ReplyDeleteGood one Gautami.
ReplyDeletePamela
Who said dead men tell no tales? :)Never saw Elves in this light.
ReplyDeleteFun. Good job with the theme.
ReplyDeleteVery, very interesting. I've never heard of these kind of poems before. It's really kind of deep (no pun intended). Good centus.
ReplyDeleteI am always amazed at the variety of contributions. Yours is very interesting and different and I enjoyed reading it very much.
ReplyDeleteSad, so sad.
ReplyDeleteI love your poetry. You skirt around between fact and fancy. We don't really know that this 'dead man' is really dead or just 'dead drunk'.
ReplyDeleteGood work getting the elves into his hallucination or reality, whatever is prefered.
Your words keep us (or at least me) guessing. Well done!
Best wishes,
Anna
Anna's SC#33
Wow.
ReplyDeleteSuch a different and compelling use of this prompt.
I like the cadence of this writing. I like the way it is open to so many interpretations.
Really superb.
Thank you for linking.