For Willie

Although I find the climax rather droll,

’tis not a farce to love in honest zeal.

A breath of passion gives an act its soul.

The props are faux, but are the players real?

She wears a paper blossom in her hair.

He threatens off the monsters with a sword

of wood–fights dragons–for the maiden fair.

The plot is old, but few are ever bored.

He slays the beasts and wins her gentle hand,

(the drums and trumpets sound an underscore)

and fairness reigns throughout the verdured land.

I doubt that most would ever ask for more.

The Bard would give us pause. He’d rather show

the tale of Juliet and Romeo.