Man sets self aflame

ripped from the headlines

Have you ever felt so invisible

but you needed to be heard,

to be seen and acknowledged

to have your will in the way of the world?

 

Witnesses in Red Square, a large brick plaza at the center of the Seattle campus, reported seeing "this big flame and a ball of fire" around 1 p.m. Thursday.

 

Why not Wednesday, or Friday?

Why not 6 am, right after a cuppa coffee

with a newspaper for kindling, crackling

as he snaps it into place to read.

 

Why not the witching hour just one day later

when he could light the night of All Hallow's Eve?

 

No, our protagonist chose to finish the paper

and his cinnabun before deciding the right moment

to be seen. He'd make of himself a flare to rival the sun,

only to burn out with the next news cycle. 

Author's Note

A 61-year-old former University of Washington staff member doused himself with gasoline and set himself ablaze Thursday in the midst of a crowded campus plaza. He died a short time later.

spontaneous effort- suggestions welcome and appreciated. I think I kinda copped out at the end there. opinions?

Reviews

[Alice]

It works very well but only for me once I'd read the author's note and knew the true story behind it. I think we could use the headline within the piece - interspersing your wonderful musings on it with sentences from the story told in factual newspaper style would make it seem more real and juxtapose nicely with your more lyrical take on it. And your musings are indeed sharp and thought provoking, especially the final line, very well written, Joe, very fine writing.

[Chloe Madison Taylor.]

I like it when you cop out.

[~angelalala~]

i like this poem. based on a true event. its got some good points. who knows why people do what they do when they do it. only he will ever know. the first stanza is my favorite. he must have desperately wanted to be seen & heard. he got his wish. if only for a few minutes in the news. good write.