Aphelion Issue 292, Volume 28
March 2024
 
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A Changed Man

by Ron Larson

Adapted from a story by H. P. Lovecraft


James Olney taught philosophy at a college.
This professor fruitlessly pursued true knowledge.
He was bored with the daily hum-drum of life,
But it was bearable, thanks to his loving wife.

She loved him, even when he stormed and raged.
Her fear of losing his love was markedly grave.
Yet, she had managed to avoid a marital death,
But when a storm broke out, she held her breath.

Then he heard of an eerie house high on a cliff
Where a wise hermit lived amid its thick mist.
He made the arduous trek up the mountain side,
And when he descended, he was changed inside.

The sameness of his days ceased giving him sorrow,
But his frightened wife was chilled to her marrow.
She had found excitement in his uniqueness.
But he was now given to robotic cheerfulness.


© 2018 Ron Larson

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