Castle (an Inktober Poem)

Hey warriors! Welcome or welcome back to Words! I’ve been loosely participating in Inktober this year, and I thought that this week I’d share a poem I wrote for it. It’s called “castle”, and it’s about an ideal life. It isn’t perfect, and it’s messy, but I liked it, so here it is. XD

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In my head, I’ve built a castle

Really, borrowed one from when

Candles and portraits lined halls

And we waited for the ball to commence.

The library is where I hide away

From all the subjects who adore me

When I need a little, childlike place

To leap through portals to other worlds

The shelves rise high towards the sun

Filled with the stories of our world

And the stories of hopeful illusion

That help us survive this short life.

The parlor holds a red velvet couch

And portraits framed in gold

A statue of my matriarch stares down

Asking us what has yet remained

Of the world she built and the walls

That we tore down because we learned

Peace requires vulnerability and love

To ever last more than a moment.

The dining room is full of treats

The chefs and bakers work all day

To make the best for foreign ambassadors

Who come to seek peace and unity

The taste of strawberries and cream

Chocolate and flaky croissants

Remind me things needn’t be the same

To be beautiful and magical together.

The kitchen smells like chicken and pie

Pastries and bread and vegetables

Slip out the side door into the garden

Where flowers and fruits abound

Breathe deep that fresh sweet garden air

Hear the river run by its abundance

Even the earth drinks and is merry here

But off to the study we will go.

The study hides my projects and schemes

My plans to strengthen my kingdom

My books I’m writing and my music

And my tutors and mentors gather.

My advisors lay out maps and sketches

My servants (paid well, and fed) knock

To let me know of messengers from

The people whose lives depend on me.

My bedroom is a special sacred place,

Safe from fairies, dragons, and wars

My wardrobe is filled with gowns and robes

Soft and brilliant like the sun in my window

A curtain enshrouds my bed with threads

Of soft and sparkling silk from afar that

Dances in the wind until I fall asleep

Each night enchanted by nature’s dance.

The tower is my planning place,

The room where I gaze out at all

The things my family has built, and smile

Alas, it is not all vain! The people are free.

Some in the courtyard catch my eye

Exuberantly waving upward

They smile, plump and rosy cheeked

Supplied and fed and well.

The ball room is where we dance like

The moon and sun in orbit, eclipsing

The drapes thrown back and gowns flowing

Cheers to the health and wealth here.

Ladies from countries far away

With jewels and silk and smiles

Their glass slippers tap on marble floors

And their shining skirts catch the light.

My prince is roaming the halls; look

And you may find him dressed in purple:

A smile of silver and hair of gold

And arms as warm as spring sunlight.

My love, he is a hero here who fought

To set these people free from lack

From tyrants past and hunger now

My knight in shining armor is he.

The only problem my castle has is simply

Its achingly beautiful, poetic existence

Alas! Dismay! Woe and such tragedy,

My castle is all in my head.

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What does your dream life look like?