A Shield of Spite

Never have I seen before,

Such wild and baseless rage,

As the storm that sprang from depths unseen,

To enshroud man leather with age.

What torment hath awoken him,

To dance the devil’s tune?

Ensnaring folk by shirt-sleeve grasp,

And werewolf bay the moon.

The train-wreck crowd plays judge of man,

Speaks damnation for his soul.

But each and every hush drawn breath,

Hides a far more sinister goal.

For each man hath this one shared trait,

A noose by his hand sewn:

To preach the sin of the other man,

So loud it masks his own.

They profess they live beyond glass walls,

Their right to cast first stone.

But if such were true, their hearts so pure,

What purpose their spiteful tone?

Reviews

[Daniel Sala]

Marvellous. "I too am certain I am immaculate perfection whilst spitting vitriol about heathen sinners...!" A well-written poem which describes one of our weaknesses with great imagery, and without becoming opaquely impossible to understand.
There is that saying about: "What you criticise in others is something about yourself you do not wish to acknowledge." - while not always true, I suspect there is a lot of truth in that, best to look at self before looking at others.

[Matt Sayer]

I couldn't agree more Daniel! Taking time to assess one's own weaknesses often puts those perceived in others into perspective. We are none of us perfect, as they say. Thank you for the review :)

[Daniel Sala]

A pleasure, Matt, you are right in what you say about putting these things in perspective; a great poem.

[InsanityWriter]

Excellent!! Your words shout the truth to high Heaven! I love the message and flow of this piece. :) You've done a wonderful job here!!

[Matt Sayer]

Thank you very much! :)

[Michelle N. H.]

I really loved going through this one. We point fingers at others for all of their wrongs not to draw attention to our own. It rings truth.

[Matt Sayer]

Thank you Michelle :) Discrimination and belittling is often a diversionary tactic for those who do not have pride in themselves.

[Vidya Bacchus]

This is such an eloquently written piece.I love how you write it.We live with the decisions that we have made and deal with the consequences.Great write:)

[Matt Sayer]

Thanks Vidya! :)

[Vidya Bacchus]

You are welcome Matt:)

[Justine]

The whole concept of a "shield of spite" is excellent ! Where can I get one? lol. This is a great poem, full of angst. I am amazed at how you make rhyming seem so effortless. Impressive. Justine

[Matt Sayer]

Thank you very much Justine!

[Lyn Anderson]

Clever wording, nice tying it all together at the end. Funny, this made me think about how I am starting to feel protective of the characters I write. I like my serial killers and adulterers. Why do people cast aspersions on fictional characters? I never thought to question a character's morals. I either find a character interesting or believable or not. Good story telling will make you empathize with a character even if their lives are not within your moral bounds.

[Matt Sayer]

I agree. Even criminals and hoodlums can be endearing and relatable if their motivations and backgrounds are justified and cohesive. If we only read characters who mimicked our exact personalities, how boring would that be?

[icelandicblue]

I like this so much. Your words resound with truth and it seems those glass houses would certainly crack should someone else cast the first stone:

For each man hath this one shared trait,
A noose by his hand sewn:
To preach the sin of the other man,
So loud it masks his own.

This is a very wise observation told with a strong poetic voice!

[Matt Sayer]

Thank you! Your words bring a smile to my face and joy to my heart. I enjoy exploring themes that resonate strongly with me, and I'm glad you can see that in my writing!