As a caterpillar enshrouds in: As a caterpillar enshrouds in its cocoon so a chrysalis emerges not quite the worm that it used to be. An inspiring prompt. Thanks for sharing. /Rik.
very poignant and filled with: very poignant and filled with a back story that the outside observer can only desperately fill with their own backstory... thanks for sharing. /Rik.
I have fallen too far behind: I have fallen too far behind in my reading; I apologize. I am very glad to have read this beautiful poem, and I cannot add anything to what Patricia has already said. The poem is very impressive and has my applause.
I just had to visit this: I just had to visit this magnificent poem again. It resonates so deeply, and raises such echoes of other poems that I have read in the decades since I began reading poetry, that I am almost overwhelmed by admiration, nostalgia, and a sense that I will be visiting this poem again and again. Few poems strike me this deeply, but this one did!
Patricia has described the: Patricia has described the poem so well that the only thing I can add is that I agreed wholeheartedly with her remarks. This is an excellent poem. Your skill with compression is perfectly deployed here, but the depth of the tale it presents is profound.
Sharply-etched and highly: Sharply-etched and highly symbolic imagery tells a story of desperation and self-destruction. Your haunting images blaze in my imagination as I connect with the experience. Small poem. Massive journey.
Excellent.
Although this poem may be: Although this poem may be criticized by one of the trumpsters (mine have), it presents a foundational truth that is being confirmed by the televised hearings: the Innkeeper simply cannot accept that he was fired by the electorate.
This poem is more than a "great write" (if I may borrow the phrase): it is also an excellent poem.
The flowing lines, the: The flowing lines, the exquisite imagery, and the emotion conveyed by the words combine to make this poem a tremendous and excellent reading experience; and, in my opinion, this is the best of your best poems. I am so very impressed with this one.