Day 159: Rumor Chain

Thanks to my muse, Carolyn, once again. I get stuck. She bails me out. That's what friends and muses are for.

Rumor Chain
By Batsheva 5/9/10

Have you ever played this game?
It goes by many different names
Operator, telephone, or
Whisper down the lane
You pass a secret message
In a long unbroken chain

But when the chain comes to an end
The secret that you learn
Is not the secret message
That began with the first turn

No, the message always changes
In every person's ear
Somehow it rearranges
Even when we think it's clear

So the message at the end
Might just keep the smallest part
Of the one that was created
When the game began to start

Now, if you've ever spread a rumor
That's a chain that's much the same
As the game that we're discussing
But a rumor's not a game

Every time that you spread gossip
You may be causing pain
Though it isn't your intention
The fault is in the chain

Which you're choosing to be part of
Just as if it were that game
But lives should not be played with
That's why gossip is a shame