No Wings Poem by Barry Middleton

tonight there is a blue haze
a mist rolled in I can't abate
and it may be the voice of fate

lately light has turned to speech
that whispers all that I may know
is prelude to the afterglow

but still I fear the gods deceive
beyond the haze the sky is gray
a somber suit for my dismay

a waste of time to dwell on that
for sadness is for living things
the dead may truly have no wings

the war is won the peace ensues
blue smoke marks the battlefield
a wingless knight discards his shield