I like this very much. Vital, breezy, and builds nicely to the sting of futility at the end.
Interesting diction as well ("belted whir," "clutch of others," "churn"). I had no problem, as some did, with "croon" and the comma following it. Nor with "replace the past" (since the narrator previously links his reverie to "lives and loves denied me" and a "second chance").
I'm not wild about "played, delayed or swept away." Too much of a good thing. (Like monorhyme generally!)
Great work. My favorite to date.
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