The Wizard of Oz

BF watched The Wizard of Oz for the first time on Saturday afternoon. Yes, the first time. Don't you think he's missed out on MILLIONS of references in his lifetime? Like, "Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain" or "Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!" or, the classic, "We represent the Lollipop Guild"? I told him that the allusions are as pervasive as Greek mythology and that it has possibly affected his law career. I might have been exaggerating...Well, he certainly would've missed the reference in this poem.

Heavy Metal Drummer Part II

Verse One

It’s more they fall for me than I for them;

they’re not my type,

or even my favorite archetype.

Drummers are the woodsmen, 

marching us,the reluctant, 

to a chorus of dwarves, in Snow White’s case,

or new, loving parents in Corinth for Oedipus,

saving us from instigating mirrors and caves.

Bridge

The orphan Dorothy’s tin woodsman 

had too much heart but not enough for her.

That chopping robot wept rusty tears

only for himself.

Verse Two

Me, I’m a sucker for the forsaken, 

a Snow White who needs an Oedipus to slay with, 

not a predictable woodsman 

or a shepherd who can’t even kill when told. 

Don’t get me wrong, 

we are indebted to the woodsmen, 

our keepers, 

they have their role, 

but I’ll takethe damned lead singer every time.


This poem first appeared in the sixtieth anniversary issue of The Fiddlehead, Canada's oldest poetry journal.