
This poem has to do with the unbelievable situation many of us seem to find ourselves in, where up is down and left is right, where very little in life is predictable or easy. We find we are wide awake, but we cannot believe what we are seeing.
The expression “Beyond the Pale” in everyday speech means: outside the bounds of morally acceptable and civil behavior.Â
But apparently the Pale originally referred to the fence stakes of a community’s boundary fence, which kept those inside safe, and those outside, out.Â
The Pale also refers to an area in Ireland that was controlled by the English to the exclusion of many of the Irish, and to the Pale of Settlement in Russia, under Catherine the Great, which was the western border region in which Jews were allowed to live.  The expression “Beyond the Pale,” taken literally, denotes the physical area, in which outsiders or undesirables are tolerated, or allowed to exist, well beyond the safety zone of the insiders.Â
Of course, history shows us, that things do not always go well, for those who are excluded.Â
I also find that this poem reads well, as a description of the outrage we feel, as we age, and are inevitably replaced, by those whom we consider our inferiors.
Thank you for coming by to read!
Beyond
Beyond
Beyond
The Pale:
We would
Succeed.
Instead
We fail.
Those who
Would help us
Do
Us harm.
Those who’d
Protect,
Instead,
Disarm.
Beyond
Beyond
Beyond
The Pale:
We travel
Over
Hill
And dale,
And once
The hill
Is out
Of mind,
We find,
We, too,
Are left
Behind.
Beyond
Beyond
Beyond
The Pale:
We can’t
Believe
That change
Prevails.
While
Whipper
Snappers
Take command,
Beyond
The Pale
Is Where
We stand.
Copyright 2020 Andrea LeDew
For another fanciful poem on being wrenched from the ones you love and the places you care about, read Bombay Deco.
For more political posturing, see Sixty Days.
I didn’t know the history of the expression “beyond the pale.” It certainnly fits our current state on multiple levels.
Thanks Liz. It sure is interesting to learn where our words come from.
You’re welcome, Andrea. Language is endlessly fascinating.