And in the centre was wrought
The memories that few hold,
The warmth and comfort
Of a mother's womb
Where we begin our life's journey.
And a bright flash of light,
That which we first see
When we are torn from our place
To start our long travel.
The next ring brought closer
The time of light-heartedness and play,
The childhood that we all experience.
Where toys are a necessity,
And where school becomes our day-to-day lives.
The third ring showed man's work,
That daily toil that we make
To live as we wish to.
The rat race we run 'til exhaustion.
The next ring told the story
Of maturity and old age,
When we all struggle to bring closer
The childhood that has passed.
And when we have found a place
To relax in the sun.
The outermost ring showed two sides
To the same thing, death.
One seemed the same as the centre
With warmth and comfort,
Representing Heaven.
The other side held heat as well,
But this heat unbearable.
It showed the place we all seek to avoid,
Hell, that land of demons and sin.
And so the great shield was wrought
To show the world of men,
And to bring their lives to meaning.
A/N; This was done for english class, where we read the Illiad. We were supposed to take the bit that spoke of Achilleus' shield and then rewrite it so that it applied to modern times. This is what I submitted. I think I ended up with a 97.