PUT ON YOUR DANCING SHOES
what is a man fashioned from clay struck from gold beaten from tin don’t give him a heart don’t stitch up his tears just sew on some buttons for eyes make him dance make him sing tell silly jokes he’s a jester he’s a friend he’s a pillow no one no one prop it up build a ship put him in he’s the captain look at his hat the seas are on fire with slicks of spilt oil and the sunshine looks dark in comparison sink down sink lower beneath the waves you’re a seal you’re a martian you’re a whale swallow up the wooden man he’ll build a fire inside and smoke will come out of your head you’ll sneeze and he’s free on a rickety raft and you’re just a fairy tale for someone to tell to their children to get them to sleep but maybe they’ll have nightmares and scream in the night and wonder if a ghost would be safer a spirit an echo a hint of the past malevolent maybe maybe not I see dead people you see dead people we all are dead people but some of us just don’t know it yet that’s why the mirror is so terrifying that’s why dorian hated his portrait it was the truth even if others never saw it we all have an inside and what lurks deep within is much different from the puppets on strings the tinman had no heart the scarecrow no brain but somehow they both still were happy at the end but we have those things and the more we observe them the more dangerous and deadly they become watch out watch out watch out watch out the strings are invisible but still can be cut but when that happens you’ll just crumple and the master will step gingerly over your corpse to make sure he doesn’t trip as he leaves
