Lester, like most of the Alliterates, comes out of the ur-matter of the RPG shared worlds of novels and game design, and of late has turned his prodigious abilities to poetry. Which he shares with the rest of us by the mailing list. Sometimes we tweak, we suggest, we critique, and most often we praise. This is one that made me smile, and with his permission, I am sharing it with the larger world:
A FATHER EXPLAINS WHY TV SHOWS GET CANCELED
At first, my boy, they're always fascinating.
Each fresh new face conceals a mystery,
an undiscovered personality,
which we spend every week anticipating.
Then, even once the novelty's abating,
there's comfort in familiarity.
At each old joke, we chuckle faithfully
(our sense of humor undiscriminating).
And when, at last, the sameness becomes grating
(or worse, begins to spread a dull ennui),
it's best to terminate them gracefully,
before their antics grow humiliating.
So now you know why God invented death, son.
(Though we can always hope for syndication.)
--(c) Lester Smith, 25 Sept. 2005
I think Lester's work is getting better all the time, and if you're interested, you can find more of it at Popcorn Press.
More later,
