Lost--A Cautionary Tale for After the Party I Woke Up On A Tropical Island Poetry Contest
Poem written for “After the Party, I Woke Up on a Tropical Island”
Anoucheka Gangabisson, sponsor 5/26/2024
Poet’s Note: I used a series of &&&&’s to indicate a shift into a different aspect of the poem and an intentional change in rhyme scheme.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In the wake of revelry's fading light,
Aboard my plane, I chased the dawn's embrace,
But soon into a shroud of fog and night,
My perspective lost, flying through a stark, shadowy place.
Crashed upon a tropical isle, deserted and wild,
With blood my only crown and pain my throne,
Amidst the wreckage, nature's wayward child,
I stood on sands of time, isolated and alone.
With hunger sharp as relics underfoot,
I ventured deep within the island's heart,
In search of sustenance, my path took root,
Berries I found, sweet yet pleasingly tart.
&&&&&&&
In the shiver of the unknown, 'neath a sky so endless and dark,
I beheld a sight mysterious-enormous footprints had left a mark.
A shadow, large and looming, appeared against the moon's soft glow,
An enormous creature of Jurassic times, from long, long ago.
The earth beneath my feet began to tremble and to shake,
As if awakening giants from a deep, enchanted slake.
A screech pierced through the silence, shattering the night,
Heralding a spectacle, a breathtaking sight.
Beneath the starlight's gentle light, silhouettes so large,
With scales that shimmered, they emerged like a mirage.
Dinosaurs, majestic, in sizes great and small,
Lumbered towards me, heeding their instinctual call.
Back to the shore I ran, where my wrecked plane lay in sorrow.
I sheltered for the night, praying for a brighter morrow.
Inside, I huddled, quivering, a soul so fraught,
Realizing now, in an episode of "Lost" I was caught.
Where is that portal, hidden, they sought with fervent glee?
It must be near, veiled in vines and mystery, waiting for me.
Night's cloak descended upon me; in dreams, I took to flight,
From stupor's grasp to dreams' vast, starry height.
Yet, as night's cloak fell heavy, dark, and deep,
In a hospital bed, I lay deep in comatose-like sleep.
Machines hummed a lullaby, wires did weave,
I dreamt of a horrifying land, which my conscious did believe.
My fiancée, by my side, a vigilant guard,
With love in his voice, his message I heard.
In the realm of dreams, where whispers dwell,
"Time to wake, sleepy head," came a loving tell.
My eyes fluttered open to a world anew,
"How long have I been here?" I asked, noting the morning dew.
"Over a week," he softly confided,
A cautionary tale, in humor, he then provided:
"My love, no one, not even you, should drink and fly!"
A lesson learned, beneath the waking sky.
For in our slumbers, we may roam,
Far beyond the stars, our spirits comb.
Yet, anchored in love’s tender embrace,
We find our way back to consciousness, our earthly place.
Copyright ©
Sara Etgen-Baker
|