The Pendulum

[The Madcap]

The Pendulum swings
To and fro
Gathering momentum
At the bottom of the arc
Only to slow and then retreat
Speed increasing in reverse

Is it a blade
Out of Edgar Allan Poe?
Cutting as it swings
Like the executioner’s axe?

Is it a weight
Meant to strike with force?
Pounding the other side
With the power of law?

--

The rulers can’t win forever
Eventually hubris is their downfall
When they believe the game is over
And they try to run up the score
Mistakes inevitably made
At the end, they are the losers

--

Rapidly, like a metronome
Over the years
Swinging back and forth
Threshing like a scythe
A reaction as extreme
As the original motion

That truth must be remembered.