Perseus

Perseus
by Deborah Walker

I can find you by scent alone.
You wind through the broken, stone relics,
the reminders of the disappointing
performance of your predecessors.

I wonder why they sent you alone.
One man against a monster can never be enough.
Will they send an endless procession of you?
With your clever, mirror tricks and your painful
unquestioning belief.

Until I put aside my outrageous anger.
Until I forget the clam, cold defilement
that forced me here.

I scent you through the weary stone.
You smell of thyme and wild myrtle.
I smell of old wine and bitter herbs.
Come closer, hero.
I am impatient to blend you into the perfume of my history.

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First published in the 2010 print edition of Static Movement

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Deborah Walker loves dreamy, dark poetry. Her heroes are Christina Rossetti and Jacqueline West. Find Deborah’s poems in Scifaikuest, Apex Magazine, Dreams and Nightmares and Paper Crow.

Where do you get the ideas for your poems?

When I write poetry, I just unhinge my mind and let the ideas flow and blend. 'Blossom' came from three threads, the prompt from Megan, sitting in my garden and seeing the cherry tree in blossom, and a medieval ring I'd seen in the Victoria and Albert Museum. A lot of ideas for my fantasy poetry and stories come from museum objects.