Sestina Against a Tyrant — The David M. Katz Poetry Blog

DAVID M. KATZ

The Green of Greenland

And we rebuild our cities, not dream of islands
--W.H. Auden

Rare earth was what the tyrant sought to gain,
His price of peace for Greenland and Ukraine.
Rather than green paper bills or coin,
He would disburse a currency of air,
Helium to Ukraine and Greenland
For treeless tundra and embattled souls.

He'd add no interest to the price of souls.
He felt they wouldn’t yield sufficient gain.
Yet he nattered on about our need for Greenland,
Saw in its ground the same grift as Ukraine.
He dreamed in Florida of Arctic air
Redeemed for tankers bursting with Bitcoin.

He dreamed his face was on a silver coin,
The chief and chairman of eight billion souls.
By day he spawned an atmosphere of air
Hot as the planet that he sought to gain
Starting with the surrender of Ukraine
And the easy annexation of Greenland.

The biggest island in the world, Greenland
Can lure a king in search of boundless coin
And conquest. Since a village in Ukraine
Contains more than the sum of all the souls
In vast Greenland, he first went after gain
From Denmark’s island, despite its colder air.

He pretzel-twisted words, spat forth an air
Of constant twaddle, such as this: Greenland
Could be the most important land to gain
To protect the U.S. from attack, the coin
Of the realm in national defense. But our souls
Cried out: Rebuild the cities of Ukraine,

Forget the pelf of Greenland and Ukraine,
And keep your hands off Canada! Your air,
The gas of filthy lucre, transports souls
To hell. Recall how Erik sailed to Greenland,
Gave it that lovely name to draw the coin
Of settlers to a Paradise of gain.

Souls continue hovering in Ukraine.
The tyrant’s gain will melt into the air.
The green of Greenland can’t be bought for coin.