Mortals Remain
by
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Flee
he was born on the end
where sidewalk
immured boulevards
smooth and true
decayed into
serpentine side streets
pockmarked by negligence
serving as jarring reminders
to bleary eyed
slag plant workers
on their way
to sunless day shifts
and after the quitting time
that they longed for
but came all too soon
on their side of that
emphysema town
upstairs above all
he slept in the
corner of a room
with blinds always drawn
below his parents
dropped dead
twenty years before they died
drowning with chests
full of sludge
he escaped in flying dreams
to southern ports
guiltless and urgent
boarding a boundless clipper
seafaring buoyantly
further and further away
from jitter dread life
to balmy islands
where his fearless polestar
would never
husk its shimmer
Conversion To Tyranny
vagabond thunder evanishing
as the horizon’s jaw unclenches
and silent clarity enfolds
a lucky few who envision
the battle unborn generations
will be forced to fight
for freedom from religion
when a halo becomes a noose
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Book Details
About the Book
… Her name, the letters chipped
and weathered here and there,
evokes an image:
she is kneeling
dapple tasseled hair
sun sheened
smiling warmly
busied by sowing
faithfully planting
in her time and place
of perfection.
--C.S. Lang
In his first collection of poetry, Appalachian poet C.S. Lang intertwines homespun emotions with twenty-first century reality as he lyrically reflects on the good, the bad, and humanity.
Within a wide variety of topics, Lang shares free verse that explores bullies, nature and the environment, petty politics, love, heartbreak, death, and grief. Other poems contemplate local news reports about a ferry gone aground, whether the desire to farm the land is truly in the DNA, and a burning question in the middle of winter.
Mortals Remain offers a poignant glimpse into a new poet’s contemplations as he reflects on life, his own journey, and the world overall.
About the Author
C.S. Lang was born in Ashland, Kentucky, and attended Karst Field Studies courses at Western Kentucky University. He is a member of the National Speleological Society and has a great passion for politics and social justice. Lang currently resides in the Cape Fear region of North Carolina.