-- My Kingdom of Thoughts --

By John Herlihy

Thoughts in my kingdom dwindling fast,

Thoughts that may linger but never last.

Some thoughts resting there in repose,

Other thoughts are as a river that flows.

A kingdom of the mind that boasts no king,

No fences, no walls, only echoes that ring.
A kingdom housing thoughts of rich and poor,

Fantasies never to come true we only endure.

From where these thought with random ways,

Leaving behind disquiet that lingers and stays.

Thoughts as little dwarfs that ruffle feathers,

As dragonflies riding the wind in all weathers.

Oh, to choose thoughts to our heart’s content,

But no, thoughts choose us until we feel spent.

They arrive at will upon the doorstep of our mind,

Surveying the playing field with intentions unkind.

Insistent thoughts intrude with a will of their own,

Alien thoughts never to be admitted as our own.

Childlike imps with an endless ability to fantasize,

Devilish wimps with their incisive ability to brutalize.

Mercifully our random thoughts never linger for long,

Their discordant melodies reverberate with a gong.

Soon our thoughts will have no need to pretend,

They arrive, they live briefly, only to flee in the end.

They plant their seeds as a kind of advantage,

When they depart, they leave behind disadvantage.

Hateful thoughts all our good intentions to assail,

Loving thoughts whose winds will fill our sail.

Beggared thieves to endlessly roam the dark night,

The dark night of the soul ever searching for light.

In search of the crumbs that fall from life’s table,

Before disappearing into mist as a childhood fable.

So, when the next thought arrives, do take care,

Crown its noble head with the whisper of a prayer.

Take me by the hand to destinations I want to go,

One true thought a restless mind may never know.

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Copyright © John Herlihy

Tuesday 1 August 2023