In voices that box me in I hear the great god Pan. He is wailing. He is stricken. He is bristling with reprisals. He understands the inescapable future. Fields filled in; horizons dwindling; adverts instead of reason, mapping paths to a billionaire’s iHeaven. And no one to blame except everyone. Pan damns me to hell and he points –
At the last mountain to be levelled, where the last mountain goat that once leapt from crag to crag, defying gravity, huddles, lame in a corner, as the last office gets built up around him and tax returns blot out the sun.
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This piece of flash fiction was written for Friday Fictioneers: a story in 100 words prompted by a picture that Rochelle Wisoff-Fields posts every Wednesday. Here’s the link to the stories and this week’s picture is below, copyright Adam Ickes.
Sweet FA by Blake 
Wow — this is quite powerful! And Pan would indeed be seriously p.o.’ed. if he saw what we’ve been doing. I love the tone and rhythm of your language in this piece. Wow.
Well, since I’ve been admiring the rhythm of your poems recently, that’s a fine compliment, thanks 🙂 Yeah, I wanted an environmental protest piece; kind of like a version of the Pixies song “Monkey Gone to Heaven”, if you know that?
Btw do you ever struggle with the word “rhythm”? I always want to add an “n” at the end, dunno why. Odd word, rhythm – it needs to go and take a long, hard look at itself!
Rhythm …one of those words that always looks misspelled! And misspelled always looks misspelled!
Haven’t heard Monkey Gone to Heaven… Will have to look for it on YouTube 🙂
Well, the Pixies are perhaps an acquired taste, so it may well not be your thing 😉
I remember one of their songs … Didn’t they do Wave of Mutilation in the 80s? Or am I thinking of another group?
Yes, that’s the Pixies. Since Monkey is their most famous song I assumed you might not have heard of them at all, but that’s clearly not the case.
Btw Wave is my favourite rock song that includes the word “crustaceans” – I’m not even sure if there is another song that does 🙂
I found Pixies through soundtrack for Pump Up the Volume – with Christian Sleighter! (Sp?)
No, crustacean doesn’t inspire a whole lot of music, does it? 😉
Well, there’s Rock Lobster by the B52s and…
True, LOL!
Lovely piece – perhaps my favorite this month.
And no one to blame except everyone. Great line
Thanks, Alicia. I think blame is at it’s best when it’s an equal opportunities emotion, so to speak. No shirking 🙂
Dear Sue,
Taxes do blot out the sun.
Shalom,
Rochelle
True, Rochelle. Although there are ways around it – for instance, I work for Amazon so now I only pay taxes if I feel like it. Which is nice.
There is nothing as horrible as a tax return blotting out the sun. Just the thought of it pulls at my goatee.
Randy
wow, that´s great. But I had to consult my favourite online dictionary, I admit. Very poetic , I love how you “paint” with words. This piece is really outstanding.
Liebe Grüße
Carmen
Thanks, Carmen, I’m glad you enjoyed the “painting.” Oh, consulting dictionaries is fun, hey. I consulted regarding a number of words for my latest story – and that’s for my first language. I’d have no idea how to start making fiction in a second language, like you do 🙂
Blake, Good piece. People are either blind or feel powerless in the face of all the destruction. I guess some feel that the money now is worth the suffering later. How can you reason with such greed and moral blindness. Well written. 🙂 —Susan
Yeah, I think Pan is cooler than Mammon. Thanks, Susan.