At first his crib confined
And he thought that all was perfect
But as he grew
He came to see
That no such thing could be
For his kingdom was shattered
Like a fallen glass
Upon a broken table

When he finally became
Tall enough to see
Over the railing
Of his tower above the sea
Fire shot before him
And he grew wiser
For he saw only
The anger in the land

As childhood slipped from his grasp
And maturity loomed before him
He fell back into his room
And shut the door
Defiantly
Father nor mother
Came to call
As he threw away the world

Years passed and food was brought
Sustaining his body only
And he passed out of memory
A footnote only
In the pages of the life
Of the kingdom
Until one day
When all was changed

A fell wind pushed
The door open
And outside cries could be heard
For merriment was not known
In the kingdom outside of the room
And the man lifted his head
Ears filled with the sound of something
He once knew

A deep voice, weak with fatigue
Was mumbling something
But the man had forgotten the language
And wasn't moved by the words
But he knew the lap of the waves
That whispered against the tower
Beckoning effortlessly

And the man slowly lifted his sheets
Giving life to his limbs
Happiness propelled him
For voices mingled with water
And his heart was unbolted
And his mind was freed
But all was quiet
As he passed the throne

Feeling the silence
The man stopped his feet
For they were too loud
In the marble hall
Where echoes flew like vultures
And sat upon the red plush pillows
That padded the king's chair
And nested in the man's ear

The vultures traveled fast
Finding his spirit to dwell
Only slightly inside his head
Behind his eyes
They yelled and screamed
The echoes that they were
And the man stirred again
Walking toward the railing

Below him waves tempted
And behind him silence remained
As the king turned his head
For the man was climbing over
Gazing at the sea
And gasping at the waves
And a cry emerged from the throat of the king
As the man closed his eyes

He fell from the tower
A bird in the breeze
And the king let out a cry
Of remorse
"My son, my son,"
He whispered
For he had not
Forgotten