Iseult, Tristan, and King Mark
[The last word pattern in the sestina: ABCDEF FAEBDC CFDABE ECFABD DEACFB BDFECA ECA] I. Others embellish, I tell the truth. I will relate the facts of the affair, Of the trip to Ireland, of the comet's flash, Of the captive princess escorted by the knight, Of the potion they drank that made their fates twinned, And led them to their vine-entwined grave. II. First, though, I have a topic that is not grave. I come from a line of writing Ohio women, and I want to speak their truth. I am their successor, our destinies are twinned. Was their writing--is mine?--more than a family affair? They wanted more than the arms of a gentle knight, More than a damsel's beauty fading fast as a camera's flash. III. I think Iseult was a tease who liked to flash, Though I truly loved her, I knew she was bound for the grave, It was she who brought down my faithful knight, I cannot lie, I will tell the truth, It was she who wanted their fatal affair, We share a wilfullness, in that trait we ar...