Mediocrity was never the goal
Failure was never an option
Lessons learned at the knee of my father
Who believed I was magnificent
And whom I never wanted to disappoint
Failure, according to the paternal scripture
Lay not in the falling down
But rather in the not getting up
Due diligence, dusting it off, perhaps taking a new course
Resilience expected, resilience & hope required.
Knowing my magnificence lay not
In the arenas of art, business, or softball
As these were provinces owned or to be
Inherited by the others
I turned to books, looked to academia
Fitting, as this path was not a way
Due to poverty, due to war,
That was offered to him.
Academia was a treasure that we shared
Although according to the scripture, the path to magnificence
Could only be achieved with grace, kindness, & forbearance
The way you walked as important as reaching the path’s end
My father believed I was magnificent
And when he died I stumbled, my faith faltering
Complaining that he was the one
That believed in me, that unshakeable knowing
That I was capable, that I was grand
And the message came
He had always, would always
Be proud, but it was time to internalize a sense
Of grace and magnificence
As well as to believe in the grace and magnificence of others.
April 6, 2011
onethumbpoetry 