Writing

I wrote this one for a rhyming contest. Did pretty well in the first round! 😁 I hope you enjoy it!

The King of Flowers in Spring

There once was a man who dreamed he’d be King,

Who wished for jewels like flowers in Spring.

Emerald, ruby, or sapphire’s blue,

Robert didn’t much care what color or hue.

In gold-threaded silks, atop his great steed,

He’d spread all his riches, and help those in need.

A crown on his head would sit very nice,

A good life for all, that would suffice.

He dreamed of a feast laid down just for him,

With tankards of mead filled up to the brim.

A pheasant or goose, which would he prefer?

Pheasant, he’d say, and his queen would concur.

In his great castle, a home they could stay,

His people would dance the whole night away.

He knew that if he could just get a taste,

Each worry he had would soon be erased.

But he was not born of rich noble blood.

Instead, he lived simply, down in the mud.

Within a forest, his cottage did lay,

A small, humble home made of red brick and clay.

And then, one morning a gent came to call,

The King had decided he wanted it all.

“Your taxes,” he said, “Have never been paid.

You’ve lived on his land too long, I’m afraid.”

Robert gawked at the gent, bewildered and hurt,

For his ancestors raised this forest from dirt.

Now the forest was old, and the kingdom was new,

But “His Grace, the King is owed what is due.”

“Due?” The man said, “I don’t understand.

My family has always lived off of this land,

Working their hands right down to the bone.

What now do I do? You’re taking my home.”

“We’ll give you a horse, a bedroll, some food,

but now you must leave without any feud.”

Without one more word, or hint that he cared,

The gent left the horse and the items he’d spared.

Suddenly wishing that he could just stay,

Robert turned back to his red bricks and clay.

“Goodbye, my old friends,” he said to the bricks,

And the hole in the door that he never did fix.

“You leaked when it rained and froze in the cold.

Your floors were always riddled with mold.

But now, without time to tinker or mend,

I’m afraid our friendship has come to an end.

“You served me quite well, while I was here,

And now in my heart, I’ll hold you so dear.”

The forest was quiet as he said goodbye,

Mounting the horse with a tear in his eye.

As he left his small home, Robert did reflect,

What kind of King shows such disrespect?

To take what has never been given to him,

To throw out good people on naught but a whim.

But his anger resolved as he passed the last elm,

Deciding he’d ride to the edge of the realm.

When he reached it, he couldn’t believe what he’d found,

Thousands of people had moved underground.

A tunnel they’d built where the King’s land did end,

Where His Royal Influence could not extend.

“For why would a King want to live here?

Into the ground, we can all disappear.”

“But what of the sun and the flowers that bloom?”

Robert cried in grief, “This feels like a tomb.”

“What are we to do?” The people did ask.

“To take back our homes is a hopeless task.”

Seeing the King’s greed had grown far too wide,

He gathered the hurt and the poor to his side.

“We cannot live forever this way,

I say the King learns a lesson today.”

In travel-worn clothes, atop his good steed,

He spread word through town that all were in need.

The King’s golden crown did not sit very nice,

And they deserved more than what would suffice.

Robert led the cold, the hungry, the gray,

Out of the darkness to greet a new day.

They all stormed the castle, deterred not by stone,

To take down the King and usurp his throne.

The people’s fury had become quite a fright,

So a fight there was, for a day and a night.

The people would no longer live on his dregs,

And like a dog the King ran, tail tucked ‘tween his legs.

When they found the Old Greedy King’s throne,

Robert said, “No man can do this alone.

Let none of us rule over the other,

Let us be free, with no crown to smother.”

But the people had seen his courage that day,

How Robert had rallied and shown them the way.

Without his guidance, love, and support,

They’d all still be in that underground fort.

So they placed the crown upon Robert’s brow.

And to rule for his people, he then made a vow.

Then Robert became a cherished new King,

Who wished for naught but flowers in Spring.