He always said
“I wish I would have known you before”
(…I became a monster.)
There was genuine regret in his voice.
The first movie we watched together
–his place/choice– was, “No Such Thing”
(as monsters.)
It was a template for his self-perception.
As he was cuffed in the back of the cruiser,
headed for jail for busting up the house,
he said, “I am legion” to the officer, who
looked in the rearview and saw glowing eyes.
In my dreams he sits in a crowded bar in hell
playing drinking games. I visit him there.
He gives me a shot of blue alcohol and says,
“Give it to her.” He’s staring at another woman.
top image: Léon Spilliaert (1908) “Self Portrait”
Lillian is today’s host of dVerse’ Open Link LIVE Night.
Tao Talk 
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Wow1 This is as chilling as your illustration. A great achievement… Truly effective and affecting writing, my friend…
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Scott, thank you very much. It is 100% true.
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Truth trumps fiction with this piece, Wow. Mt teeth are clenched to match my fists. The evil that men do is only equaled by the evil that some are.
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Glenn, good way of putting it. To be honest, I see the dream as a sign that he’s cutting me loose from his enchantment. There is, in my experience, a thread of good in even the most evil among us. Thank you for reading and your comment ❤
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Superb poetry, chilling, so well captured, the viewpoints, all. Takes guts to even write it I think…
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Ain, thanks. It did.
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This is exquisitely drawn, Lisa! I can visualize as he sits “in a crowded bar in hell
playing drinking games.” A chilling and powerful poem.
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Sanaa, thank you. There is more to the dream that is even more chilling but I left it at that. Thank you also for hosting tonight and troubleshooting.
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Great evocative piece – and what an image to accompany. For me, I read some pity for this monster – and the final image, the bar in hell – straight outta Dante’s inferno with disco ball.
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Peter, you read right. Look at my comment to Glenn. It was quite a harrowing dream that was something more than a dream. I wonder if that’s what happened with Dante?
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I would have liked to have been able to hear you read this during the live event!
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Jenna, I wish we could have stayed in the original room that I got to via my phone and you would have. Using the PC to link up was glitchy 😦
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Quite a chilling poem. A perfect match to the image!
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Thank you, Christian. I wish it wasn’t so 😦
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Intriguing story Li
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Thanks, Sadje. Truth is always stranger than fiction.
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That’s true.
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I had to reread this after your comment to Glenn. You are quite the story teller, you know that?
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Dale ❤
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💞
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I got the shivers with this one Lisa! Wow! ☺️
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Thank you, Christine!
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a great last line LIsa.. Loved your poem! 💖💖
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Thank you, Cindy ❤
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You’re so welcome Lisa! 💖
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Evil can hold us in thrall and sometimes dreams show a way out. Chilling and evocative.
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Punam, I believe you’re right. Thank you for reading and for your wisdom.
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My pleasure, Li. 🙂
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I like the crowded bar in hell! Nice touch.
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Thanks, Max. It was a dream I had. There was more to it, but this was a main takeaway from it. Not a place I want to go again!
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No, not a dream you would want to repeat…but a cool image. Billy the Kid and all sorts drinking it up.
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🙂
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I was very moved by your poem, even more so after reading the comments. I am glad there is a sense of closure and redemption.
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Thank you, Irene, your insightful and kind comment is appreciated ❤
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What a dream you’ve shared here….and the image is equal to the task of expressing the eeriness, horror, frightening scene. I wonder what was in the blue alcohol?
SINCERE apologies for the technical glitch for OLN LIVE. I’d done the links so careflly and with Sanaa tutoring me. First time I did OLN LIVE it went well; second time, blew the links; this third time I thought for sure it would be okay. I shall wait quite a while before trying again. I do so enjoy hosting though…would have loved to hear you read this one aloud too. 😦
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Lillian, in my dream class, I have learned that the dream world loves to use puns and other wordplay to get the message across. I see this as drinking game = he’s an alcoholic who plays games and passing the blue shot (of alcohol) to another woman = giving the burden of his games and the blue/depression that follows to someone else.
No worries on the technical difficulties, Lillian. Please don’t stop hosting, each time you do it, it will get easier. You’re good at hosting! You probably already know about copy-and-paste, which is always the ideal way to insert those twisty beastie links. Thank you for reading and your thoughtful comments ❤
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Wow!! I’ve not read your work before but this is wonderful! Really love your descriptions. Beautifully put
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Thank you, LaShelle!
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You’re welcome!
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This may be my favorite ever of yours, Lisa. It speaks with the power not only of dream but of the entire toolbox of the subconscious. You had me at “..It was a template for his self-perception.” and thee final stanza is just perfect in its mood of desolation and looming Gothic atmosphere. The dreamscape has its own clarity, but it is often a frightening one.
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Joy, thank you for your appreciation and your insightful comment. You’re right about the dreamscape. This was my first trip ever to hell and it was only after I was awake and writing it down that I shuddered at where I had gone. It didn’t seem that bad in the dream. Thinking about it again right now, everything was in shadow and a sepia tone, like an old painting. His bald head and the blue shot were shining in contrast to it.
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I wish we could have heard you read this yesterday because I suspected it was true (and see from the comments it is). I is chilling and well-written. I agree that it’s one of your best. It’s amazing what truths are revealed in dreams sometimes.
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The pieces have been waiting in the wings until that last stanza, conveniently provided by the dream. You may not have heard me mention it before, but I’ve been part of a “dream group” on and off (on again now) for a couple of years. We bring our dreams to group and deconstruct/reconstruct them with each others’ help. I believe that the dream world was designed as a necessary soul growth facilitation mechanism. What’s amazing is that it is available to each and every individual. It’s like that book at the library that you can choose to check out. Thank you for reading and your comment, Merril.
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Dreams are fascinating. I should have written down the one I had last night.
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You still can (if you can remember it.)
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😏
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And, you’re welcome, Lisa! 🙂
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Hmmm, this sounds a lot like a couple guys I’ve known . . . Great writing, Lisa! Do you teach? If not, you would be good at teaching creative writing. Have a sunny Sunday! 🌞
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Lisa, thank you. No, I don’t teach. Thanks for thinking so ❤
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Better in your dreams than anywhere else. The last stanza conjures up a whole wack of wonderful…..creepy, but wonderful.
Nice to see you at OLN. Sorry we got a little lost in cyberspace. 🙂
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Mish you have a point about it being in the dreamworld. Ditto on the OLN chat 🙂
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Horrorfully amazingly drawn lines❣️❣️❣️👍
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Thank you very much.
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Does your dream group include things Carl Jung said about dreams? If so, is that an emphasis, or a once-in-a-while possibility?
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Jung was mentioned more in our class called Psyche’s Garden, the first one we took. There were a lot of slide show images of Jung’s dreams and dream representations of his patients. We used them like rorshachs and then the teacher would tell us something about the patient. Right now, in the myths and heroes classes we are focusing more on Joseph Campbell.
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Thank you for the wonderful description and answer. I’m sure it’s fascinating. Sounds fun.
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You’re welcome and yes it is. Not only for the info the teacher shares but for the general discussion with the assembled “crones.” All women group except for one man. I feel sorry for him lol
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