i’ve learned

i’ve tried to be a hero, but
i’ve learned that that’s not me;
and i’ve held on the best i could,
but lost a thing or three

i’ve struck out with the bases full,
i’ve walked the winning run;
i’ve laughed at times i should have cried,
and cooked things overdone

i’ve learned that love is not a thing
to trifle in with others;
i’ve seen the end of choices and
the wasted use of druthers

i’ve walked beside the morning lake
and seen the lonely fisher;
i’ve learned that steady waste can still
end up a little richer

i know that envy helps no one,
yet we give it approval;
the evils born of us, we miss,
and hinder their removal

i know now that the quiet path
can be a path that’s brambly;
i’ve learned that family’s everything
and that friends can be family

that though there may be places,
there is little time for hiding;
for life is short enough without
our endless wasted biding

amid the messes that we see
and make, along the way;
i’ve learned that there is only now
and only here, today

but limits can be fought against,
and old fears overcome;
and everything, when added up,
is still a simple sum —

the sum of our inheritance:
this life, this wisdom breathing –
the sound of horses on the plain,
the swish of swords unsheathing

to battle on for one more day,
and ne’er again give into
the voice that says there is no point
in living as
we’re meant to

Author: Sibelius Russell

Sibelius Russell (a/k/a/ Owen "Beleaguered" Servant) lives a life of whimsical servitude -- whatever that means. View all posts by Sibelius Russell