Narcissus And Echo Poem by Elia Michael

The story starts with Echo's love for talk
A curse was laid on her which took away
Her speech, all she could do was repeat talk
Directed at her, that's all she could say

Narcissus was the most beautiful youth
He surpassed all in desirability
And Echo knew this was indeed the truth
She fell in love with him immediately

The nymph awaited her love in the wood
Narcissus was there hunting all alone
He heard a noise not far from where he stood
He shouted 'who's there? ' to person/s unknown

She tried to tell him of her love but failed
The only words she said were his, 'who's there? '
And if she hoped that love would have prevailed
He ran away, he'd had an awful scare

Rejecting Echo, he'd broken her heart
She pined and pined and eventually died
And then her bones became as stone and part
Of mountains, there for ever to reside

And that's where one can hear her echo most
In sad, forlorn tones she echoes one's voice
Her voice is just a disembodied ghost
Repeat, repeat, she really has no choice

Narcissus carried on breaking people's hearts
He treated women, men with disdain
Until Artemis used her wily arts
For him to fall in love and suffer pain

He came upon a wooded shady pool
To quench his thirst he kneeled to have a drink
Of water, water which appeared so cool
But he observed something which made him blink

There in the water was a handsome youth
Narcissus smiled at him and he smiled back
Narcissus looked at him and thought, in truth
His beauty's perfect, nothing does he lack

Each time he tried to touch this perfect youth
The water's surface broke; he'd disappear
The ripples would eventually smooth
That paragon of youth would reappear

He fell in love but could not have this boy
Now he too knew an unrequited love
In accordance with Artemis's ploy
This youth was the only thing he could think of

He leant a little closer, closer still
The wood-nymphs shouted a warning to him
He cried aloud, his voice was rather shrill
'Alas! ' And Echo cried 'alas! ', voice grim

Narcissus fell in, despite being warned
And where he'd knelt, a pretty flower grew
The beautiful youth had drowned and was mourned
By ghostly Echo, all the wood-nymphs too