Tantalus had it hard, the prize
so near
yet.
the Crow also – his Cup, next
door, like
you
I do not.
consider it.
4 thoughts on “tension”
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Tantalus had it hard, the prize
so near
yet.
the Crow also – his Cup, next
door, like
you
I do not.
consider it.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
All that tension in the struck-through ‘not’. Really needs your footnote as it’s such a pretty deal tale of deceit and would be hard for this reader to crack the poem without it. Bello, Marco.
So much we want is just (over) there and (beyond) reach.
yes. thanks John
the original format has the words sprawled across the page. not here. pity. anyway: the Crow & Cup are constellations (Corvus & Crater). This, from Wik:
Another legend associated with Corvus is that a crow stopped on his way to fetch water for Apollo, to eat figs. Instead of telling the truth to Apollo, he lied and said that a snake, Hydra, kept him from the water, while holding a snake in his talons as proof. Apollo, realizing this was a lie, flung the crow (Corvus), cup (Crater), and snake (Hydra) into the sky. He further punished the wayward bird by ensuring it would forever be thirsty, both in real life and in the heavens, where the Cup is just out of reach.[4]