‘Oscar’ The Man of Metal
I built a magnificent man of metal
out of old used tin cans.
I removed the tops and bottoms
and with them I made his hands.
I unrolled the assorted cans of metal
and hammered them into shape.
Then welded and riveted them together,
which made his exterior look great.
I gave him joints for movement
and eyes of coloured glass.
Electronic circuits became his brain,
which added that touch of class.
He had nerves of steel and fibre-optics,
and anti-freeze was his life blood.
Movements of time charged his power cells
making his battery life exceptionally good.
From head to foot he dazzled too much,
so I decided hide the shine
behind trainers, jeans and an old t-shirt,
and a hat that once was mine.
The time had come for his beginning,
so I pressed his power pack.
His eyes lit up and sparkled with life,
as he flexed his joints and back.
After blinking, smiling, and twitching,
he quietly asked who he was.
“A magnificent man of metal, ” I said,
“inspired by ‘The Wizard of Oz’.”
We sat watching the movie together
and not a word was said.
He memorised the whole of the script
and repeated it ‘til I went to bed.
I left him watching the movie channel,
and he sat there day after day.
One morning, in the early hours he woke me
to tell me that he was going away.
He had decided to become ‘An actor’,
the best the world had ever seen.
Hollywood was waiting for a man like him
to appear on the silver screen.
[...] Read more
poem by Orlando Belo
Added by Poetry Lover
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