There was a sense to him
Of a man once capable
Whose deep and organized intellect
Now descended into a tattered shambles
Of non sequitur and conspiracy theory
Consciousness corrupted by cognitive bias
Offering easy answers to difficult questions
His was the kind of disheveled mind
I expected to find huddled around an oil drum
Set alight for warmth in some subterranean refuge
Gathered there amongst others
Who had failed life as much as life had failed them
But, no
A driver came ’round to the passenger door
Opened it with crisp, deferent efficiency
And this sullen, morbid, dreadful mind emerged
Camouflaged by Italian designers
He passed through the gates of power
A useful idiot oiling wheels of industry
Constructed and maintained
By well educated minds
Which might know better
Were they not entirely consumed
By self interest
In him they’d found their man of the people
Someone who could speak to the masses
Motivate them against their own interests
A trait exploited fully by the engines of avarice
So that many there were
Huddled around burning drums
While the masters of the universe
Nestled in their dragon’s hoard
Britannia Mining Museum
Britannia Beach
British Columbia, Canada
Pic and a Word Challenge
Last time we counted the Rings of life.
This week, let’s order and renew the Shambles. Or find something else to inspire you in this photograph of a set decorated for the TV series, The Magicians, shot on location at Britannia Mine in Britannia, British Columbia, Canada.
The Pic and a Word Challenge is a weekly creativity prompt typically offered Mondays.
With each challenge I provide a photograph of mine along with a single word. The challenge? Use the pic and/or word as inspiration to create something — a photograph, a painting, podcast, video, prose, poetry, fiction, non-fiction, longread or just a few words. You are welcome to use these two elements (photograph and word) literally, thematically or metaphorically. If you create both images and words, all the better.
To participate:
- Use any title you like
- Your response can be words and/or images
- You may use my image to illustrate your post, or any images you have created
- Mention that you are responding to the Pic and a Word Challenge
- Add a link to this post in your response
To help us find your response — whether on WordPress, Instagram, Flicker, Tumblr, etc. — you can also:
- Add a comment on this post to announce your response
- Apply the tag/hashtag “Pic and a Word Challenge” or “#picandawordchallenge” to your post
Each week, I’ll list the previous week’s responses at the end of the new challenge. I may also share some on my social media: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, etc.
The previous challenge was: Rings
The word for last week’s Pic and a Word Challenge 402 was Rings, along with this photograph of spectacular hoodoos in Utah’s Bryce Canyon National Park, USA.
Three bloggers counted their Rings this week. (Neroli wrote her lovely contribution as a comment on the challenge post!) ❤ Thank you. 🙂
View all the Pic and a Word Challenges, including the current challenge, on the Pic and a Word Challenge tag page.
Happy Creating! ❤
Pix to Words 