Charlie's Room

It was just on the stroke of midnight,

I was going to go to bed,

But I had to pass by Charlie’s room

So I hung back there, instead,

I could hear the rattle of drums that came

From under his bedroom door,

And then the sound of a French ‘Huzzah!’

From a Napoleonic war.

 

I thought, ‘He’s at it again, he’s got

The Frenchies marching east,

He’s going to Borodino, where

He’s got a chance, at least,

He’s leading the French Grand Armée

As Napoleon did before,

But I couldn’t get in to stop him, as

He’d locked his bedroom door.

 

I shook my head and I went to bed,

There was no point hanging round,

For Charlie, he’d be up all night

‘Til the Armée went to ground,

By dawn he’d have them dragging back

From the Russian ice and snow,

And wouldn’t be fit to go to school

‘Til he’d had a sleep, you know.

 

He wasn’t a kid like other kids

He wouldn’t play with a phone,

He didn’t get into computer games

But he spent his time alone.

He didn’t make friends so easily

For he never went out to play,

But stuck his head in a history book

And would read and read all day.

 

They said he must have been gifted in

Some strange, abnormal way,

He used his imagination for

The games he wanted to play,

His mind reached back to another time

Where the personae were dead,

And brought them back for a second chance

On the counterpane of his bed.

 

I caught a glimpse of the action once

In a crack through his bedroom door,

A galleon moored in a harbour by

An armed Conquistador,

He saw me there and he slammed the door

And he said, ‘Don’t interfere!

I’m trying to raise the English Fleet

And I can’t if you’re standing there!’

 

His mother took him to town one day

To see a psychologist,

Who said, ‘He lives in a world of his own,

I think he’s really blessed.

We all grow out of our childish ways

And I think he’ll be the same.’

He thought it was all in Charlie’s head

‘Til the day that ‘Little Boy’ came.

 

He’d read and read of the second war

For a month until that day,

When I heard the aircraft engines I

Just knew, the ‘Enola Gay’,

I beat and beat upon Charlie’s door,

Broke out in a cold, cold sweat,

But the plane took off, and I grabbed the wife

And we’d still be running yet.

 

We were out in the road when the roof blew off

With a mighty blast and roar,

And the mushroom cloud was curling up

While we lay, flat out on the floor,

Charlie had gone from our lives for good

With his gift, and his bag of tricks,

Hard to believe that he had the power,

For Charlie was only six!

 

David Lewis Paget

Reviews

[cimmy wuv xxxooo]

Brilliantly penned.
This is one of those poems that keeps you hooked and makes you want to read on.
This little story was interesting, makes you want to know whats going to happen next.
The rhyme scheme was also brilliant and was another thing that kept me reading, and made this piece sound so much more poetic, seems like your rhyming comes naturally to you, doesn't feel forced at all.
Your gifted this was an amazing piece, such deep meaningful, moving and powerful write :)
Keep writing you were clearly born to write :)

[Miss Sharon]

This is one of the most intriguing and beautifully written pieces of art I've read in a long time. Wonderful imagery. Bravo! ~Sharon

[Urja Gokani]

amazingly written keep it up !!

[Dominique Lambright]

This was amazing I wanted to read more and you had me hooked throughout waiting to see what happened next

[Sarah Ramsbottom]

Hit me hard. I am the mother if a child with autism. This explains him a million times....

[jackie]

wow!!! very good. it made me think of my children.

[Devesh]

I simply have no words. Period.

[BlackRose]

Phenomenal piece. Hooked again. Fun to read this one and the others. Great that it's always a different then the last. That's one of the reasons that keeps me here. First for your great writing and story skills pulling us in each time. :o)

[Cryingkate]

This was one metaphysically awesome write.
Thank You for the fun little journey.

Connie

[A Soap Mess Stories]

Wow! I never expected Charlie to be so young...he sounded much older in your tale...great storytelling....