Moats and Drawbridges

To those of you out there who read this, sorry for the gap in the number of poems per week. This past week was finals week, and even though I was done on Tuesday, my artistic efforts were focused elsewhere (I was designing t-shirts for PomonaCru).

Today has been interesting. I went to visit my grandfather in the hospital, who has suffered a stroke after an operation on one of his major arteries. He's getting better, but the experience was very hard for me, much harder than I expected. This is the man responsible for furthering my interests trains, planes, and many other things, and is the grandparent that I am the closest to. So if you could keep him in your prayers, that would be a huge help.

But the day is not over yet. Off to adventure, dinner, and a show! My family and I will be dining at Medieval Times tonight, because we've never done it, so that will be a lot of fun. Here's a poem I wrote today about modern-day castles.

"A House With No Fences"
by Neil Mullins

"A man's house is his castle,"
Says someone with a cry
And the stubborn lines on his face
Lead me to wonder, why?

There's a myriad of reasons, to be sure:
Television, cars, pets, family and tenure
But I think the reason his expression was so tense
Is because he built too big and too tall a fence.

Yes, fences are built with good intentions
To keep out robbers, vermin, and the occasional wild car
Though sadly, what happens with such prevention
Is that we keep out our neighbors and friends, as if in a war.

So give me a house with no fences
And a tree with lots of shade
So we can sit and enjoy the sunsets
And trust others not to raid.