May Day

 

A man of wicker, sixty foot

They build; within him do they put

Twelve cats, twelve rabbits and twelve c***s

Six sheep, two piglets and a fox.

The yet more dreadful sacrifice:

A man, this is the awful price

The gods demand for harvest full,

For just the mix of rain and sun

That brings health and prosperity

For all who gather round to see.

Then as the sun descends, they bring

A torch to light the ghastly thing

That towers over all who stand

And form a circle, hand in hand.

The flames lick up the wicker legs

But though the victims cry and beg,

The watchers sing a joyous air

Of summer coming, without care

For all those beasts who screech with pain

Before they’re taken by the flames.

The man is taken last of all,

‘Twould curdle blood, his final call

Ere death most merciful arrives;

They cheer, for now the crops must thrive.

A creaking and a groaning come

To show the festival is done.

The wicker man, with mighty crash,

Falls to the ground, and soon is ash.

 

Yet these were in the olden days

Mankind has since improved his ways.

The old gods have now been forsook,

Yet they grow wroth, and will not brook

Such negligence by feeble man,

Who would grow fat and not give thanks.

I see them rising from the west;

Soon man will act at their behest.

He has incurred a goodly debt;

The gods will have their payment yet.

Author's Note

Ever see the film "The Wicker Man", the 1973 one, not the remake? Then you'll know exactly what this is about. Except maybe the bit at the end, that's about something else.

Reviews

[Tony]

I wonder if the Burning Man festival has anything to do with this.....
I don't think they sacrificed anything out there but dignity.
Oh, and law. which is cool.
Anyway, this poem carries an excellent omen with it. Powerful and Reasonable.
Who out their nose who controls the harvest/food supply nowadays?
The Lord of Misrule, I bet.