Tal Stenner
Scapegoat
We thought we’d like just
a flicker of what rumour said
blazed and roared up there.
We had a contact -
more one of them than us -
so when he came down
we asked and he said he oughtn’t,
they must never find out
but if it was really what we wanted.
We’d had enough of salads,
raw rabbit, extra furs in winter.
Our eyes flamed imagining
the thing they had that we didn’t,
how close it would bring us to them.
At first he carried in a spark -
it died in unaccustomed hands.
Our friend brought more. We nurtured it,
fed it, learned to master it.
Somehow news spread to distant eyes
bringing them down burning with anger.
Who gave you this?
Damping embers of our pride
we pointed at our friend.
It was him.
a flicker of what rumour said
blazed and roared up there.
We had a contact -
more one of them than us -
so when he came down
we asked and he said he oughtn’t,
they must never find out
but if it was really what we wanted.
We’d had enough of salads,
raw rabbit, extra furs in winter.
Our eyes flamed imagining
the thing they had that we didn’t,
how close it would bring us to them.
At first he carried in a spark -
it died in unaccustomed hands.
Our friend brought more. We nurtured it,
fed it, learned to master it.
Somehow news spread to distant eyes
bringing them down burning with anger.
Who gave you this?
Damping embers of our pride
we pointed at our friend.
It was him.
Page(s) 56
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