Come one
Come all
Down to Yharnal
For the Parade this Saturday.
Featuring a marching band, floats, and balloons
And for the grand finale
A special performance from the marching band and drum major
To leave the night in spectacular splendor
The tv turned to an entrancing static
I let it.
The week has been old and gray.
A sense of dread and anxiety
Hung in the air,
Heavy and thick.
I needed something bright in my week,
So with the sound of static
And an echoing of a "night in spectacular splendor"
I decided to go
The next afternoon
I headed out to Yharnal
The jewel by the ocean.
And as I approached,
Like a jewel,
It seemed to shine when nowhere else did.
I heard music as I arrived in the small town,
The deep rhythmic vibrating beat of a drum,
As if the town was emanating it
Drawing me deeper to the center.
I followed its pull,
Past polished shops and gleaming sidewalks,
To the Main Street, where a crowd had formed.
I pushed into the main crowd to watch the festivities.
Despite the music and warmth in the air,
The crowd seemed cold.
I watched and followed the parade to the last stop,
A wide pier overlooking the ocean.
Devoid of anything,
Except for the drum major's podium.
A podium,
Which the drum major mounted confidently and contently
While the marching band took its position
To play the finale.
And a finale it was.
The melding of music and chants that were started by the locals
Gave me the feeling of an uncanny beauty,
That of which I have never experienced before.
The music seemed to tell a story,
A story of fear, anger, sadness
And acceptance.
As it started to crescendo
So did the voices.
The story now screamed of prosperity
Until a final note was held.
And the chanting continued to grow louder,
Until it drowned out the music.
Then in a single motion
The drum major pulled out a knife,
And let it slide across his wrists.
With his arms outstretched
He fell backwards into the sea.
As he fell the chanting and music ceased
And was replaced by the whirling of water as a vortex was formed underneath him.
He fell into the depths of the vortex.
And the vortex collapsed into itself,
Creating a supernova of light.
And just like that it was over,
The people dispersed and I walked to my car,
Noting that things seemed a bit more impeccable than before.
And as I drove out
I realized that the sky over Yharnal
Was the only sky without a cloud.
