Down On His Luck : 19 lines of Blank Verse about a man who’s down on his luck.
from a painting by Frederick McCubbin
With a fallen twig, he prods at the fire
releasing a thousand flaming djinns
who desperately try to cloak their presence
in the billowing grey smoke of anonymity.
Like a priest probing the auguries of the future
he stares steadfastly into the flames.
To draw confidence, knowledge, comfort?
Certainly, not warmth!