A Children's Masque

for the Jabberwock at Jackson State, and Kanitria

On the stage the children sing,
sliding into groups of two:
"If we waltz we will be kings."

No one really says a thing
against a claim of such dispute
as on the stage. The children sing

as we allow; we'd like to cling,
anyhow, to a corollary truth:
when we can waltz, we can be kings

(though the converse surely brings
more truth, it's much less sweet to chew).
"On the stage," the children sing

"History is a trifling thing,
conceding to our practiced tune:
if we waltz, we will be kings."

A lone conviction rings
first amidst those that accrue
upon the stage, as our children sing:
as they waltz, they look like kings.