by Sarah M. Prindle
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AI-generated graphic by NightCafé for The New Verse News. |
Pull a rabbit out of a hat,
pick a card,
levitate a large table.
Such magic tricks bring joy
and gasps of amazement.
But smoke and mirrors
can be deceptive,
engendering fear
of the unknown.
When harmless strangers
are distorted into threats,
magic takes a sinister turn.
Children playing at recess,
women behind the store’s counter,
men toiling in the field…
Poof! Gone.
Masked men swarm the area
and make them disappear,
a vanishing act that brings grief
instead of wonderment.
Sarah M. Prindle received an Associate in English from Northampton Community College. She loves reading everything from historical fiction and memoirs to poetry and mysteries. She hopes to someday publish her own novels and poetry collections and has already had her work published in several literary magazines and websites.