Sameen
Good one. Concise and best.
2026-06-08

Clara Mae Gregory
Thank you very much for explaining. Yes, I am capable of that (laughing at myself-- of seeing what's not there in terms of what it means). But I appreciate your explanation. I see your poem differently now, and how you intended it. And yes, from seeing it that way, you are very right.

It is definitely a unique way of putting it. I got distracted by the actual meaning of the Fable itself versus your symbolic use to illustrate the poor guy who wishes he could fly vs the guy that will in his future (or has that power now) over the skies. Wealth. The symbolism behind the weapon.
I finally "get it". Thank you. Sincerely.
2026-06-06

mickeko
You're looking for something that isn't there, that's why you can't find it. It doesn't matter who "they" are. I'm saying that owning the skies will make you blind to it.
2026-06-06

Clara Mae Gregory
Back to your poem's implications that begs the question:

Well then, who is "they".
I know who Icarus was as well as why he wanted those wings.

Your poem brought to mind 2 American Presidents Truman and Eisenhower, both once were at the helm of human governance. Truman dropped the Atomic bomb, backed by the concept it would end all future wars as well and well, the sacrifice was thought to reduce the actual death counts associated with the war. Unfortunately it required sacrificing innocent people . Eisenhower was the opposite. He was not a war monger and did not profit off of war. All the Icaruses of the world could have food to eat and wings to fly with clear skies and no residue ever to cloud anyone's place and space. Do you think you can shut down these war machines and war mongers by the continual production of such?
That is the reality. So, who are "they"?
2026-06-06

mickeko
I appreciate the comment, but I didn't write a poem about Eisenhower, nor the hubris of Icarus.
2026-06-06

Clara Mae Gregory
Hello. My impression is it would be a better poem if it wasn't based in an inference made errantly. It is just an opinion and I hope the following helps in clarifying my critique. If you do not want me critiquing your work, please just kindly message me. I respect your wishes, if that be the case. I don't read everything or everyday what is written here, nor read consistently other authors' work. But I do try.

"To own the skies
We need weapons"
-The Conqueror,

Sounds like a quote that a gamer might make.

But President Dwight D. Eisenhower actually said these words:

"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed."

No truer words are these. And those that destroy- those that destroy the earth are evil- all of them.

I think you missed the point in the Fable of Icarus. I could be wrong, it is just the impression I got from the vagueness of the words' inference as to why Icarus wanted to fly.


Do not fly too high! Reaching too far and exceeding human limits leads to crashing.

Do not fly too low! Staying too close to the ground, wings get wet and heavy.

Conclusion: Stay on the "middle path" and BALANCE AMBITION with CAUTION and SELF-AWARENESS.

The precise lesson of the Icarus fable is the danger of hubris (excessive pride or arrogance) and the necessity of moderation. By ignoring his father's advice and flying too close to the sun, Icarus let ambition and exhilaration BLIND him to his own limitations, which resulted in his deadly fall.The fable conveys its meaning through the two specific guidelines that were given by his father, Daedalus.

It was not naive curiosity without purpose.
2026-06-06