Worlds Apart

[Ben]

      Without a thought I tossed a pebble
      And watched the ripples spread
      My mind was distant; far away
      'Till I was filled with sudden dread
      In fright I stood and looked around
      For a sign of what was wrong
      But nothing looked out of place
      Life seemed to be on song
      With a shrug of shoulders and a backward glance
      I set off to meet a friend
      And never knew the thing I'd done
      Nor what I'd caused to end...
      
      Others too were there that day
      Though we never saw each other
      For they existed within their world
      And I lived in another
      They sang and danced and wrote and talked
      They could laugh and they could cry
      They lived and loved and warred and fought
      Much like you and I
      They sailed in boats and walked the plains
      They ran and leapt with joy
      They worked on farms and in the cities
      And their children played with toys
      In all these ways, they were just like us
      Though we lived a world apart
      They were mostly caring loving folk
      A people; of soul and heart
      Yet one fateful day the sky grew dark
      The sun blocked all but out
      A giant pebble came crashing down
      And of their fate they had no doubt
      They prayed and cried and ran in fright
      They screamed and wailed in fear
      As that giant rock came crashing down
      They knew - the end was here
      And as their lives all then ended
      I jumped up with sudden dread
      And upon the pond - the ripples ripped
      And my destruction - went on to spread...

[ForbiddenJoy]

Hi Ben,

I like this even though it makes me sad, but in my own experience it's full of the truth -- especially these days for myself.

As that giant rock came crashing down
      They knew - the end was here
      And as their lives all then ended
      I jumped up with sudden dread
      And upon the pond - the ripples ripped
      And my destruction - went on to spread...

These were my favorite lines. I think I will leave my comment at that, I don't think anyone really wants to hear my thoughts of how I feel.

Joy

[Hannah]

Ben
Dramatic and thought provoking. We do live in blinkered worlds and are rarely aware of the affect we can or do have on others, on life, on the world itself. It is too easy to destroy, mindlessly, yet it takes so little to affect postively: a smile, a thank you, letting someone else go first; even these simple things can bring powerful changes. Your poem reminds me of the film Pay It Forward, based on a real story. A couple of lines are a little awkward, eg:

With a shrug of shoulders and a backward glance

and
 

The sun blocked all but out

but overall, the rhythm is strong and would make for a powerful performance reading. 
Hannah

[Bonnie]

Hi Ben, I love your poems they're always so thought provoking. I liked the whole premise of this one. If we could just see the microcosm of the world around us we'd be so much less willing to destroy it with a careless action. Good work. 
Bonnie

[Dr Biswambhar Dash]

Ben, I appreciate your feelings and the pain inside your heart has been reflected quite clearly. I became really sad but then the world around me gave me ample opportunity to absorb it and made me to learn (through the lines of your poem) the essence of living. Thank you.....Dr Dash.