A/N: First of all, sorry about the --- between the stanzas. For some reason, this website wouldn't let me put in the extra blank line to break them up. I'm sorry if they detract from the original intent of the poem, but I couldn't think of any other way to separate them. Secondly, I guess this poem is only loosely related to SG-1 as there is not much specifically mentioned that connects it to the show; it started out as a school assignment but kind of morphed into something from Daniel's POV. I tried to get in his head and feel the curiosity and sheer awe that he felt every time the team came across something new. I'd really like to know if this poem lives up to that!
Ode to an Old Book
You lie there
in anticipation
of the next to pick you up,
---
an ancient tome
filled
cover to cover,
---
a volume
replete
with untold riches
hidden gems
of vast
and long-forgotten
knowledge
---
and
---
(I hope)
---
Meaning of Life Stuff.
---
I reach out-
just a finger!-
afraid to touch
daring to hope
---
that you-
a simple book!-
might hold the
Answers
to the
Questions
---
that I
and all Mankind
have always asked.
---
Finally
I hold you, gently
reverently
in my hands
beneath my trembling fingers,
---
your leather cover
protecting
the precious knowledge
hidden inside
embossed,
---
the ridges-
mountains and valleys
under my awed touch-
like Braille
communication for the blind.
---
Expectantly
I open you
slowly,
---
the crackling
of the ancient binding
creaking
stiff
from disuse
---
barely heard
over the beating
thumping
of my anxious
heart
against my chest.
---
With the
barest
briefest
of touches
I feel your
thin pages
finger the
ragged edges,
---
lingering
hovering
in the air above them,
---
afraid a longer touch
would spell their
death
---
(a crumbling
dusty
flaking death).
---
The delicate pages
yellowed
wrinkled with age
like an old man's skin,
---
the elegant script
flowing
tales to be
decoded
deciphered
read.
---
I lift you
to my face
close my eyes
inhale
breathe your scent;
---
wisdom from another planet
---
lost
and found
---
in an old book.
A/N: Well, now that you've read it, please let me know what you think! Did I capture Daniel's curiosity and wonder, or was it not really worth posting?