A Poem by Bill West

Shadow Play

At that moment
when some other
gazes from your eyes
Though you always knew
a shadow lurked there

when some other
hand puts you on
like a glove
a puppet pointing
a gesture of
alien countenance

Though you fight
that cold intent
the uninvented
the unsympathetic
barbarian at the gate
come to pillage and
despoil, towers topple
and the gates gape wide

But after amongst
cinders and dust
when you are alone
prone, marshall
of regret you will
search behind
other eyes
for shadows.

Bill West writes poetry and flash fiction.  He lives in Shropshire, UK and he is the Micro Fiction editor at The Linnet's Wing.  His writing has been widely published online and in print.  He is a Pushcart Prize nominee.