A Reckoning of Days

first attempt at a villanelle- for a contest

We come to a reckoning of our days

Where man cares naught for grief of land nor fellow man

Beware, beware the futile harvest reaped of selfish ways.

 

When the poorest lose the rains that nurture zea mays

and children of rich suffer depleted attention span-

We come to a reckoning of our days.

 

Pundits advise we treat all as just a passing phase

So sit back and order a new round on your black and tan;

Beware, beware the futile harvest reaped of selfish ways.

 

From distant shores comes a cloud of war wrought haze

Mothers in tents pour diseased water into the cooking pan,

We come to a reckoning of our days

 

We poison fishing grounds of the world's bays

With philosophy derived of the Ku Klux Klan-

Beware, beware the futile harvest reaped of selfish ways

 

Our actions now decide who dies, who stays

From Brazil's fertile delta to remotest Pakistan

We come to a reckoning of our days

Beware, beware the futile harvest reaped of selfish ways!

Author's Note

I'm not real good at rhyme- it always feels forced to me. Honest feedback appreciated.

Reviews

[Mark]

FABULOUS, RACHEL!!!
This is, now, including my own, only the third villanelle I have seen on this site, and I am finding it a more and more attractive form. There is something so focussed, so directed, that those repeated lines keep bringing us back to, time and time again. Wonderful bringing of today's issues into perspective, with the embrasures of yesteryear! Thank you!

[Emily B]

when our words meet metal, we can change the world

yes, you've got it