Mindless Direction
There was no order,
only madness.
Windows became doors,
doors became less.
A house divided,
claimed by a mass
that claimed to represent
the masses, became a shell.
No murmuration, this.
An uproar, a swarm
flocked to relight
a star totally eclipsed.
Their order a chaos,
disjointed, disorganized
yet contrived as rebellion,
brought only more darkness.
Disarray their purpose,
they took to flight,
dispersed, scattered,
their damage done.
murmuration – the flocking behavior of starlings
United States Capitol Attack – January 6, 2021
This poem is my response to The strange houses of Lee Madgwick, the prompt from Sarah at dVerse ~ Poets Pub, which is to find inspiration in one of four surreal images of various structures. I chose “The Murmuration at No. 57.” More of the art of Lee Madgwick can be found here.
rivrvlogr 
True, true words!! Well done Ken.
Pat
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Thanks, Pat. 🙂
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Wonderful 🖤
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Thank you.
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A very sobering metaphor as social commentary.
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Thank you. If only it weren’t so.
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You’re welcome, Ken. More’s the pity.
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Very clever, Ken. There are some great lines here, and I love the way you combined the image, the bird behaviour and the horror of Jan 6. A house divided indeed.
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Thank you, Sarah. His art is unique, and this one spoke to me right away.
Thank you for the prompt.
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Indeed… so much destruction comes from rebellion without a cause
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The mind boggles. Thank you.
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A dark madness descended on the house. I don’t know how anyone can watch those clips and not gasp in the horror of that day.
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Agreed. They dismiss it as trivial, but just the thought of that day is disturbing. Thank you.
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The darkness continues, leaving a lot of damage. Your interpretation of the photo is a realistic one when the house is divided, there is no unity, only chaos. A sublte political commentary.
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Thank you, Grace. Yes, people are facing prison time for their actions, but there are others who are now emboldened. Darkness, indeed.
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Let’s hope they keep running…
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If only.
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A great metaphor, Ken. You expressed it very well!
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Thank you, sir!
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You are welcome
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“A house divided,
claimed by a mass
that claimed to represent
the masses, became a shell.”
This sounds very much like the state of American politics. A house is divided, and neither side really listens to the people. However, the Lunatic Fringe side whose members went on a little “tour” of the Capitol is more directly worrisome than the out-of-touch lot on the left.
~Ornery Owl~
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Agreed! Thank you.
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So clever, Ken, to take this surrealist image and use it as a metaphor for the Jan. 6 insurrection. Plus, you got in Lincoln’s house divided! Well done!
Our current world is surrealistic, too, as so many believe what is not true.
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Thank you, Merril. I’m curious as to how he would have imagined the Capitol or White House twoyears ago.
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You’re welcome, Ken.
I imagine he’d be very sad, and see it as history repeating itself. And that despite all of the inventions and knowledge since his time. A complete backlash against the good of the New Deal, the Great Society, and a society trying to become more inclusive.
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Well-assessed. Thankfully most of them were captured on video surveillance and will have some accountability for their willful actions.
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A spooky, smoky image of our times.
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Thank you. 🙂
Wish it weren’t so!
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