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Mervyn Peake

An Old And Crumbling Parapet

An old and crumbling parapet
Arose out of the dancing sea -
And on its top there sat a flea
For reasons which I quite forget,
But as the sun descended, and
The moon uprose across the sky,
We were alone, the flea and I,
And so I took it by the hand

And whispered, 'On your parapet
D'you think that there'd be room for me?'
'I cannot say,' replied the flea,
'I'm studying the Alphabet.'

But that was long ago, and saints
Have died since then - and Ogres bled.
And purple tigers flopped down dead
Among the pictures and the paints.