by Mohammed Musthafa Azeez

Created on: June 26, 2009

My Card House

A few years ago,
I wanted to make,
A lofty card house,
Which would never break.

I placed one card,
On the marble floor,
After a while,
I placed one more.

That was how,
I built the house,
It took patience and care,
And years of love

With every passing year,
The house became bigger.
Pillars rose high,
The walls grew thicker.

Until one day,
I stopped to see,
This card house of mine,

The best there could be.

At the base stood,
Cards of ones, twos and threes.
And at the top of the house,
Lay the kings and queens.

Like a plastic pyramid,
It was almost perfect,
Every card was perfect,
Except my favourite quartet.

The King of Diamonds,
And the King of Spades,
At the top of the house,
Both of them were placed.

Above them stood,
Just two more cards.
The Queen of Clubs,
And the Queen of Hearts.

I knew I had to,
Sooner than later,
Choose just one card,
To place above all other.

So I picked the Queen of Clubs,
Not to throw her.
She was still my Queen,
Alongside my Kings she'd stay.

What happened next,
I really don't know.
She fell from my fingers,
But never hit the floor.

The Queen was scorned,
In her fury she cried.
To stop her from falling,
I desperately tried.

But the damage was done,
She crashed onto the house.
I watched in horror,
As my cards were tossed.

Seven years of hard work,
Were lost before my eyes.
And there was nothing I could do,
To salvage my pride...

The cards were strewn,
All across the floor.
Would they come back to me now,
Could I build my house once more?

No, most of them said,
Never, never again,
Upon your trust,
Shall we depend.

A few years ago,
I wanted to make,
A lofty card house,
Which would never, never....break.

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