27 January 2013
I have the very thing for you, won't you come and see? He led me from his run down stall, down into the next street I felt a little nervous; in fact I had cold feet But then we turned a corner and there it was, this thing I said to him, 'What is it?', he looked at me and grinned 'A time machine', the man explained. 'For you to see the past Choose a place to visit, you're sure to have a blast You only get two journeys, so please don't let this slip One to see your time of choice and then the return trip There's one thing that you mustn't do, in fact it is a sin To interfere within the year that you find yourself in.' 'Ok', I said. 'I'll do it. I'll see what I can see Where to go? Oh yes, I know, 1963...'
November 22nd, happy faces, everyone Except for me for I could see the shape of things to come There I stood on Deeley, looking for whom to blame Then on my right, the awful sight of a sniper taking aim I shouted out, a blur of noise; he must have heard me bark And with the crosshairs slightly out the bullet missed its mark The DPD arrested him. I had ran away For I wasn't here to interfere with the proceedings of the day Kennedy was furious. Someone had to pay He rounded up the Cubans and he sacked the CIA The FBI was mothballed, it became a military state Even the Mafia was culled at an unforgiving rate He launched missiles at the Russians, that triggered World War Three And I couldn't help but wonder; was it because of me? I raced back to the time machine and wiped away a tear Come on you infernal thing, back to my own year...
Returning to the present, I could do nothing but stare The remains of nuclear war, absolutely everywhere Buildings lay in rubble, no people to be seen Now only the stench of death where once life had been But strangely the old man was there. Impassive, standing by Shook his head, then gently said, 'I told you, didn't I?'
Marketplace • Opuss № I