Elizabeth Tabakow
English
Ms. Brown
October 23, 2004

1. Beach
Sharp rocked cliffs
Green apple creepers
Choking the rich chocolate
Earth
Soft honeyed sands
Disfigured by a slashing
Scar
As milky white pebbles
Recede slowly
Into the shimmering
Turquoise sea

2. Fire

Trees' dark
Leafy plumage
Displayed so proudly
Devoured by
A bright-eyed monster
With brilliant sunset
Colours blazing
Chewing up pride and civility
And spitting them into
The unforgiving ocean

3. Beastie

Awake in dark
Awake in light
Eyes flickering with
Vulgar, sadistic delight
Littluns run
And bigguns hide
From a danger burning
Deep inside
I know it
You feel it
It's harnessed me too
The beastie
The monster
Who'll kill us
Is you

4. The Lord of the Flies

"We shall do you"
The Lord sways
Flies dancing
On the warm wet blood
Bloating, expanding
He captures their thoughts.
"We shall do you"
He laughs and
The laugh echoes
Through the sickened jungle.
"We shall do you"
He promises
And the half-shut eyes
Of authority
Stare me down.
"Jack and Roger
And Maurice and
Robert and Bill
And Piggy and Ralph
Do you.
See?"
I see.

5. Hunters

"There's a dead
Man on the hill"
"Kill the beast
Cut his throat
Spill his blood"
Hunters chanting
Boys panting
Power rushing
Fingers crushing
Spears rising
And I am crying
"There's a dead man."
Writhing bodies
Pouncing
Ripping
Grabbing
Biting
In a cruel
Dark wave
"Kill the beast!"
What beast?