To Drain a Lake by Himring
Fanwork Notes
My prompt poem for the "Queens of the Quill" challenge was:
Asiya Wadud, attention as a form of ethics [excerpt]
Who would dream to drain a lake? is a question asked in this poem, but I have taken it very much out of context here.
(There are no named female characters in this piece and no nods to any Legendarium Ladies April prompts.)
I have tagged it as poetry, but the lines and the rhythm are very loose.
Fanwork Information
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Summary: Who would dream to drain a lake? An attempt to answer this question, posed by my prompt, for Middle-earth. A few short reflections. Major Characters: Major Relationships: Genre: Poetry Challenges: Queens of the Quill Rating: General Warnings: |
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| Chapters: 1 | Word Count: 236 |
| Posted on 9 May 2021 | Updated on 9 May 2021 |
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This fanwork is complete. | |
To Drain a Lake
Read To Drain a Lake
Who would dream to drain a lake?
Men have done more than dream of it.
They have done so to obtain arable lands.
They have drained whole lakes to irrigate fields,
unthinking,
never anticipating
that the drained earth would turn salt.
Who would drain a lake?
Melkor, who later despoiled Helevorn,
drained the Great Lake, it seems,
battling the Valar,
as he smashed rock and burned earth.
If there had been a lake in Gorgoroth,
if there was a lake in the Brown Lands,
Sauron drained them.
Doubtful that either of those dreamed of it,
before or after,
aiming at higher things—
or lower.
(I do not wish to peek into their dreams.)
Were lakes drained?
When Beleriand sank
or Numenor,
how likely is it that lakes were riven in the earthquakes,
drained before they drowned?
Grey Mithrim,
gleaming Ivrin,
reedy Linaewen,
holy Aeluin,
Nisinen of the perfumed air,
broken and poured out
before the sea poured in.
Elves and Men
dreamed of lost lakes in lost lands
long after.
Maybe the Master of Esgaroth,
in his dragon sickness,
dreamt of draining the Long Lake,
to recover jewels from Smaug’s waistcoat.
Maybe Saruman, searching secretly for the Ring,
dreamt of draining the Gladden Fields,
if he could have got away with it.
Did anyone dream of draining Kheled-Zaram,
believing Durin’s crown lay at the bottom,
theirs for the taking?
The more fools they.
Oooh, I like this a lot!
Oooh, I like this a lot!
Thank you very much!
Thank you very much!
Oh my. What an interesting…
Oh my. What an interesting take on 'who would drain a lake?' - especially that conclusion!
Thank you, Grundy! I'm glad…
Thank you, Grundy!
I'm glad you found it interesting!
I enjoyed how you took this…
I enjoyed how you took this concept through the whole timeline! I think my favorite line was
(I do not wish to peek into their dreams.)
Of course it's a bit of an aside, but that sudden bit of iambic pentameter in the midst of free verse really made an impression on me, and it ties that whole section up very strongly!
Thank you very much! Good to…
Thank you very much!
Good to hear that it didn't feel forced to you, taking the concept through the Ages!
And I am glad that aside worked so well for you!
Definitely poetry! And what…
Definitely poetry! And what a great use of the prompt. In the beginning, I expected it to remain very general, connected to Middle-earth but not necessarily referencing much of it, and then you went all in. And that conclusion? Goosebumps.
Thank you very much! I think…
Thank you very much!
I think it might have been the idea about Kheled-zaram that I started with, but it all stayed rather shapeless in my head for a while, until it came together.