Friday, April 25, 2008

"THE BROGUES"

Once upon a time in the green, green land of Rogues
There lived a clan of little people, called Brogues
Brogue was a lilting language that enhanced the spoken word
And brought a smile to ones face, whenever it was heard

They lived within the forests, inside a ring of trees
Quite content to stay that way, in a life of perfect ease
They dressed in colors of the land, of course that was green
Which in itself was security, they were never really seen

On the toe of their shoe, hung a little bell, that only they could hear
And when they heard that little tinkle, they would totally disappear
Inside the ring of trees, they lived with crocks of gold
They found it all beneath the earth, at least that’s what I was told

A Brogue went astray one day, as he woke up from a long sleep
His surroundings were unfamiliar to him and he began to weep
He shook his leg in a call for help; he thought he would be found
He was too far away, from the ring of trees, for them to hear his sound

He was also outside the forest, unprotected from being seen
That is how I met him, so tiny and clothed in green
I didn’t want to scare him; I whispered and said “Hello”
He looked up at me with teary eyes that seemed to say, ”Please Go”

Instead I sat beside him, totally amazed at what I was seeing
And I told him I wanted to help him, just like another human being
He asked if I could get him back, to where you don’t grow old
In return he would reward me with, one big crock of gold

We rambled on through the forest, until we found the ring of trees
Once he stepped inside, everything was green and I was on my knees
I was all alone, he was gone and this part I have never told
There in front of me just beneath a tree, was a sparkling crock of gold

Michael Christopher Daly
April 20,2008