Draft in the author’s style. This poem was written for Poet in Wonderland to sit beside the author’s own readings, and is waiting for the author’s review. The commentary is a working draft too.
I woke up in a kingdom made of blocks of green and brown,
With a sword of shining diamond and a wooden, pixel crown.
The sun was a yellow square and the clouds were tiny cubes,
And the pigs and sheep wandered by in their little, boxy groups.
I built myself a castle with a moat and a drawbridge too,
And a tower made of glowstone that shone in the night's dark hue.
But the night brought crawling creatures, with a hiss and a fizzing sound,
And I lit a hundred torches to keep them off the ground.
I dug down deep for treasure, and I found a hidden cave,
Where the diamonds shone like starlight, and my heart grew bold and brave.
When the morning square rose upward, I was safe behind my wall,
And I learned that the best adventures start when you build something tall.
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Commentary
A world built of blocks is an invitation to build. This poem follows one day and night in a pixel kingdom and finds the joy of making something safe and tall.
The speaker wakes “in a kingdom made of blocks of green and brown,” with “a sword of shining diamond and a wooden, pixel crown.” The sun is “a yellow square,” the clouds are “tiny cubes,” and the pigs and sheep move “in their little, boxy groups.” The speaker builds “a castle with a moat and a drawbridge too.”
At night “crawling creatures” arrive “with a hiss and a fizzing sound,” and the speaker lights “a hundred torches.” Digging deep, the speaker finds “a hidden cave” where “the diamonds shone like starlight.” At morning, safe behind the wall, the speaker learns that “the best adventures start when you build something tall.”