AMERICA THE MEAGER (sestina)

Alive burning with fire consumes me

Ready freedom burns me

Disputes consume me

House of ill repute

Esteem pollutes forbidden fruit

Pursuit of dreams

American happiness is not pursuit of dreams

American dream a lie, fire consumes me

Covered clotted cream, forbidden fruit

Deceit, the lie of the American dream burns me

Life in the house of ill repute

Americans, wish I weren’t consumed

Freedom from consumerism

Important to pursue the dream

Caught up in ill repute

Desire consumes me

Dirty hands burn me

For sale, buy my forbidden fruit

Can’t hide away forbidden fruit

Lust consumes me

Thirst so strong, it burns me

Cravings coerced, reimbursed dreams

Yearnings consume me

Borne and bred of ill repute

Iraq, Beirut, wars of ill repute

Oil the biggest forbidden fruit

Observing abuse consumes me

Obliterating abuse consumes me

Inflicting suffering drowns dreams

Blues burn me

Trickle down abuse burns me

Weak forced to accept ill repute

Eradicates man’s right to dream

Access to achieve forbidden fruit

Denials of basic rights consumes me

Animal abuse and pollution consume me

Wrenched heart, fear consumes and burns me
Equity and decency consume me, searching escape from ill repute Forbidden fruits multiply wealthy citizens; cancel out poor man’s dreams

This is written in sestina form:

1st Stanza   ABCDEF 

2nd Stanza  FAEBDC

3rd Stanza  CFDABE

4th Stanza  ECBFAD

5th Stanza  DEACFB

6th Stanza  BDFECA

The last 3 lines are formatted thus

AB

CD

EF