Illustration by Poet Rummager
Scylla found him half drowned in the ocean blue –
unconscious and badly bruised.
In a darkened, dank cave, she kept vigil by his side –
whispering reassuring words; telling him everything’s all right.
For days he would shiver; delirious and fevered.
Scylla soothed his fears with the sweetest voice he’d ever heard.
One day, she found him awake in the seaweed bed she had made.
Approaching him silently, she prayed he wouldn’t be afraid.
Her dogs growled as he turned to look her way.
His eyes widened as she came into focus. He didn’t know what to say.
As he had laid those many nights and days, a part of his brain had decayed.
Looking at her, instead of the monster most sailors feared,
he saw an angel full of grace, and his grateful eyes teared.
“Thank you so much” were all the words he could manage to express.
She nodded happily, and her tail curled around and stroked his chest.
No other words were needed as they embraced in the gloom.
Sighing contentedly, the peculiar couple smiled up at the radiant moon.
*In Greek mythology, Scylla was a monster that lived on one side of a narrow channel of water, opposite its counterpart Charybdis. (Wikipedia)
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Poet Rummager 
What a sweet story, only thing is that, it seems a shame that, a man’s brain has to be decayed before he is able to see the real inner beauty in a woman!
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Lol! Yes, such a shame — now which part exactly is it we can decay to insure he puts the toilet seat down after he’s finished wizzing?
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I’ve heard tell–whispered rumors, really–of a woman in Bhutan who has learned how to put the toilet seat down ALL BY HERSELF. Apparently, she is worshipped as some sort of Goddess. Name’s Marge. Something like that. 🙂
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I just sit
not to worry
My brain is already rotten
I just have a good memory
Love this one
Just what I needed this morning
A jolt of fantasy
Too much reality these days
Thank you Rose
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I like jolts of fantasies; they help to electrify the hum drum of everyday life. I love what you say! Thanks so much, Sheldon. 💋💄
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Very sweet. I kept waiting for her to bite the poor bastards head off at the end. 🙂
Really enjoyed it, thank you.
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Ha! That’s precisely why I left his head intact! I’m onto you, my talented Irish friend! xo
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Beautiful reading!
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Thank you so very much, Katrina!
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Nice illustration, too
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Thanks Sir Derrick! I’ve seen your illustrations, so your compliment is much appreciated. 💋
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Aww so heartwarming and yet so bizarre. Great work, loving the pic too 😀
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Bizarre is getting more difficult to achieve these days, so I send you kisses for your very much appreciated words. 😘
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xx 😀
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BRAVO What a great tale. You out did yourself here.
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Many thanks! I’m touched. Scylla is a ham and any paring down would result in her vicious tantrums. No way would I let that happen — those three dog heads attached to her waist are scary!🌹😊
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Excellent. Everyone gets a happy ending this time!
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Thanks! Happy endings are difficult for me when twisted endings are just much more fun. Glad you’re happy. 😍
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Well, she’s still a monster.
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Yep! You never know what might happen next. 😊
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Hopefully she’s not prone to nightmares.
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I doubt nightmares scare her.
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Yeah, but it be like that old joke about the guy who dreamed he was eating a giant marshmallow and woke up to a missing pillow. Guess that’s more like sleep eating.
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Ah, so if she dreamed she were eating chicken, you’d better “wing” it! Gotcha!! 😀
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Ha ha ha! If she were dreaming of eggs, you’d better beat it.
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If she dreamed of trees, you’d better leaf right away!
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You better flea if she’s dreaming about her dog.
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Good one! You win!! Scylla will be visiting you tonight. Yay for Chuckie! 💣 🔪 🗡 ⚔ ☠ ⚰
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Hooray! You’re lucky, I just looked a web site with a bunch of those puns.
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Whew! Thank you Jesus.
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I see we have a happy ending here Rose!
You haven’t crossed over to, dare I say it,
the Light side?
Say it isn’t true Rose. 😧
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I take mini-vacations to the light side, but I reside in the dark side. We’re practically next pond neighbors, remember? — which reminds me, can I come over and borrow a butcher’s knife, Alan? I broke the blade on mine the other night. 🙂
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Of course you can Rose.
That will make it 4 butchers knifes
and 2 thumb screws that you owe me. 💀
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Darn! I thought you’d forgotten about the thumb screws. 😀
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I enjoyed the old-fashioned ballad feel to this, mixed with the bit of humor. A sweet story.
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Thank you! I was thinking it would sound great with a bit of banjo strumming and then a sweet violin plucking at the end. I do need someone to sing the lyrics. Do you know how to sing?
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Well, everyone knows how to sing. 🙂
I can carry a tune, but I’ve never sung for an audience.
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Good enough for me! Congrats on your new non-paying gig!!
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Hahaha
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“Guys: We don’t know what we did?!” 😉
Loved the poem and the story it told.
Cheers! 🙂
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I think there’s a part in men’s brains that’s slightly decayed, and makes men forget what they did wrong. Don’t worry; Scylla and her dogs will remind you! Thanks Sinister 😉
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Haha! Yeah, prob is. 😉 We just have selective memories. Your welcome. ^_^
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Ah, that’s okay. Monsters don’t have selective tastes!
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Whoa…look at those scales! My kind of woman.
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If you like her scales, you should take a look at her fins! I think Scylla likes your mustache, DD. 🙂
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Yikes…I wonder if the gills match the fins!
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I never heard of Scylla. I’m going to hang out near the ocean more often.
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If you do hang out near the ocean, remember to bring bones for Scylla’s dogs. That’ll keep their teeth busy and not on you. 🙂
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Lovely!
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Thank you! Scylla did all the work 🙂
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[…] Poet Rummager (aka Rose) Scylla […]
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This is a wonderful tale depicting the purity of love. That love looks through the mind’s eye and physical appearance is not a hindrance to pure love.
I know the character of Scylla from Gree mythology, is the story has a mythological base as well? Or you weaved it? Both ways, it’s a very sweet, loving story ❤
The artwork reflects your skill and talent… loved it… 🙂
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Hi Mani! Yes, Scylla is from Greek mythology, but I illustrated her as being much prettier compared to Homer’s description of Scylla in the Odyssey. She’s described as quite grotesque with six dog heads and twelve feet!
Thank you very much for your lovely words! ❤ I always look forward to your visits and comments.
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It’s always a pleasure visiting your blog. Your paintings and poems- together they are just perfect! 🙂
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A fearsome monster? She looks cute to me. Nice tail too.
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I’m glad you find her agreeable, Mel darling. I suppose it’s that decayed part of your brilliant brain that sees her as beautiful. A blogger once told me that decay = happiness. I guess blissful blindness leads to being open to seeing more than what meets the eye. 🙂
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Speaking of blindness…I don’t trust Homer’s description of Scylla 😉
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A poem on Greek mythology! I found it interesting to note that a partly decayed brain helped to restore the perception of beauty and clarity of thoughts. 😀
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What wonderful words! I love your point of view and the way you describe things… makes so much sense and is profound. Thank you. xo
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Awwww > what great imagery just entered my head there. I would love a part 2 to see what happens next to them 😉
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I’ve read your amazing passages, so I know that you can so easily write Part 2. I’ll leave that up to you to picture it in your clever mind and your imagination. xx
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As they say…beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
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That’s true but so is ugliness. It appears that decay in the brain isn’t the only thing that would mask a hideous appearance. Winston Churchill’s quote always makes me laugh:
I may be drunk, Miss, but in the morning I will be sober and you will still be ugly.
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Lol…good one. 😀
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That’s a nice romantic story, even if the man does have a moldy old brain.
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Haha! Yes, but Scylla appears to like it 🙂
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That’s love for you. 🙂
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Reblogged this on KCJones.
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Another brilliant poem, Rose! His brain already got him in trouble, clearly it has no saying any more, but his heart responded to something most beautiful, so let the heart rule.
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I loved your point of view, Inese. Yes, sometimes the heart is wiser than the brain. Thank you very much. xo
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Hi, Fab blog! I am still in the very early stages – 5 months old. Just making efforts to link in with fellow bloggers to improve our followers and get the word out there for us both. I would appreciate you having a peek at my blog, as I have published several posts. Feel free to like, comment, follow or just take a peek. Thank you 🙂
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