Nonet

I like the degeneration implied in a nonet(in case you can't figure it out--nine, eight, seven, etc. syllables down to one).  Form thus dictates my function? Entropy of the poetic? Who knows.

we who have never forgotten the
crack of the neighbour's whip then the
rage of the earth in the night
from which we rose and thrived
we are beggars still
free but only
beggars, still
beggars
still