Trumpets for Icarus (30,000 Feet)
For Poppy's Prompts Thingo #13 Greek Mythology Edition and celebration of an important Vocal Milestone.
Trumpets sound
to the tune
of my own
creation
A tune for me
the god you see
~
Flying high,
swollen pride,
30,000 feet,
my confidence
stretched thin
beneath my heat
~
Accursed I am
like Icarus,
escape from my prison
became the
crutch
that never held me back
from always
flying too high,
too far
from everything
that offers stability
in search of
the greatness
bestowed upon me
too lonely
doing
what we all want to do—
touch the sky—
feel the eternity
of the line
between
sunrise—sunset
be that of a god,
thee—god
of our own making
on our own.
~
I cannot soar
like Icarus,
but my spirit
it soars.
My prison—
my rusty old
set in stone cage
held me back,
but once free
I didn't heed
got too ahead
of myself and everyone else.
~
Hubris, maybe—
but more:
a need to fly.
To give power
to my creativity
power and space
so no river
valley or mountain
could stop me
but alas, pride —
pride comes before
before a fall.
~
And a fall from 30,000 feet
leaves more than bruises—
but a tattered, torn semblance
of truth.
*
Thanks for reading!
Author's Notes: This poem is both a celebration of reaching 30,000+ total reads on Vocal and an entry for Poppy's Prompt Thing #13: Greek Mythology. I chose Icarus because I relate greatly in many ways to stories of pride and hubris and also felt it was a grounding, slightly ironic way to celebrate huge achievement like 30,000 total reads.
I would not have been able to achieve 30,000+ total reads on my own. Thank you, as ever, to anyone and everyone who has read even just one piece that I have written, then liked it and commented. But even more so, thanks to the people who show up time and time again in the comments section, supporting, encouraging and taking me down a peg or two when necessary.
Here are some other things:
About the Creator
Paul Stewart
Award-Winning Writer, Poet, Scottish-Italian, Subversive.
The Accidental Poet - Poetry Collection out now!
Streams and Scratches in My Mind coming soon!
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Comments (19)
Woohoo congrats! 🎉 🎉 I can't even imagine hitting that number.
Congratulations! What a way to celebrate!
Congrats on 30,000! Haha, your last 30 day reads is more than my total reads! But love the choice of Icarus (it seems a few have chosen that for Poppy's prompt), but you poem-ed it well. I hope it's a tale we'll always tell. Nice work as per usual, Sir Paul!
I love this!! It drew me in straight away and i was captivated for every line. Also 30 000 reads is insane!! But also not surprising considering you and your awesome poetry! Congratulations :)
Impressive achievement… well deserved! 🥳 Entertaining poem for Icarus… excellent last stanza… 30,000 feet is impressive for wings of wax etc!😳
Congrats, Paul!! I can't even begin to fathom such a read count! Love how you worked Poppy's challenge prompt into the announcement. Very clever! Glad to account for a handful of those reads, always a pleasure to read your work! Cheers, friend! And here's to flying on for 30,000 more!
No Top Story here is a war crime. John Vocal shall be hearing from the Hague soon. Not that I guess we should be all the surprised considering that study abroad semester he spent in Kosovo in the late 90's.
Such an insane milestone, congrats! I can't even fathom that on here. Well-earned! You've written so many amazing pieces (this one included). Absolutely love that last stanza too.
Congrats mate! Great poem to celebrate as well!
Congratulations, my liege!
Ironic? Heheh. Then I shall not state congrats! Also you need to bank that cash lol! 😜 I like the Icarus tale too.
30000 reads!! Holy macaroni!!! That’s awesome!! Well done to you!!
Whoaaaa, that's hugeeeee! Congratulations on hitting 30k reads Sir Paul! 🎉💖🎊🎉💖🎊
Clever take on the challenge. Here’s one more read to feed your ego 🤣
As someone who has contributed at least 2 of those reads, you're welcome 😎 And now I'm listening to Iron Maiden, so double victory here.
Not even any snark here, congrats buddy! That’s a big number with a lot of hard work behind it.
Icarus is one of my favorite mythology stories. Congratulations on such a feat.
Anyone that loves Greek tragedy is cool in my book
🔥 This is more than a celebration — it’s a raw, poetic flight through the soul of ambition and self-awareness. The Icarus metaphor lands with weight and grace, reminding us all of the beauty and risk of soaring. Congratulations on 30,000+ reads — every one of them earned. Your vulnerability and vision inspire ✨🕊️