Midnight Melodies
by Yao Chi - Aug 27 2003
Late in the evening twilight, child,
Sometimes you’ll hear a sound,
The plaintive cry of singing strings,
A drifting all around.
No, no one knows the player's name,
Nor if she even has one,
We call her just the Phantom Phiddle,
When ere' her art is done.
We know not when she comes around,
Or when she’ll deign to play,
But never will you hear her tunes,
About the light of day.
But if you’re lucky some sweet night,
You’ll hear the dragon’s melody.
The distant strains of joyous strings,
A fog bound in polyphony.
I know you do believe me not,
And I scoffed so at my Dad,
But years ago, I happened on her,
For that I am so glad……………..
T’was in the fall when leaves do change,
I slumbered in the glade.
Far from house and home I slept,
As sunset threw its shade.
A sound of fluttering broke my sleep,
And there before my eyes.
A glorious dragon did alight,
As light fled from the skies.
I cowered there in silence,
Surely it’s here to feed.
I never could have been more wrong,
It sought to slake another need.
And as the moon broke o’er the hills,
And gentle mists arose.
I saw she had a fiddle case,
She lifted out a bow.
A moment more and then I saw,
She held a fiddle too.
Confused I held my silence,
I truly had no clue.
So she rosined up her fiddle,
and She fanned her leather wings,
Then she sawed away a jolly tune,
And many other things
What's more she danced and skipped about,
It seemed an Irish jig,
T'was not more than a dragon dance,
Just part of her sweet gig
Grinning like a knavish fool,
I watched her lovely dance,
And struggled to stay hidden,
for I had this urge to prance.
She roamed about the gloaming,
As her songs lit up the night,
Her music touched my spirit and
Sped up my farmer’s heart.
One tune after another did,
She play the night away,
My eyes grew heavy once again,
Exhaustion held its sway.
Sometime before the dawn my child,
I think I fell asleep,
I missed some of her symphony,
Oh child I could weep.
But as the sun fell on my face,
And warmed encrusted eyes,
I thanked the Lord I was unseen,
For surely I’d have died.
The traces of her passage were,
Obscured by falling leaves,
The dragoness has gone her way,
I felt the urge to grieve.
But soon enough I gained my stride,
Returning to our home.
This cabin by the fields seemed oh,
So very all alone.
And yet I’d smile now and then,
For what I’d seen and heard.
The Phantom Phiddle at her work,
A lovely graceful bard.
T’was then I noticed something odd,
A chafing in my pocket.
I felt the fabric with my hand,
It felt much like a locket.
And this my child is what I found,
Be careful it is rare.
An iridescent dragon scale,
Was tucked away down in there.
T’is threaded on a loop of silk,
Look how it sparks and twinkles,
She must have placed it there herself,
When I was with van Winkle.
The dragoness I had not fooled,
I guess I have no stealth.
This trinket yes it's valuable,
But mem'ries are my wealth.
So when you hear those phantom strains,
Take time to pause and listen.
I know I do my lovely child,
As tears my cheeks do glisten.
Yes I have often roamed the glades,
To see her one more time.
To watch her as she plies her bow
Her music oh so fine.
Alas I have not found her yet,
Although her music’s heard.
Now hush child, its time to sleep,
Of this you have my word.
She’ll grace us with her melodies,
And with her tuneful skill.
No harm will she bring anyone,
She comes not here to kill.
Sweet dreams my child, the night is young,
You’ve nothing now to fear,
Just listen to the crickets ............ OH !
What’s that ? …..… Oh my, she’s here !
********
Quoted from a post by Llyvohn (aka Lynne Stephenson)
O.O .. I've been immortalized in a ballad! Kinda ;; It's INCREDIBLE Yao Chi! I wish I had such skill with words. I've tried my hand at poetry before but it's not my thing at all.. I really love the mood of this poem, too, it fits the picture I drew really well! It's a beautiful story and you worded it so expertly. I can just picture some random minstrel in some far-off kingdom strumming a lute and singing this..
Der Floofinator invites you to peruse other poems if you enjoyed this one