A Heart in Balance

"They" say chivalry is dead

 

Painting ‘The Accolade’, by Edmond Blair Leighton
for LS

Once Upon a Time, a happy dreaming child was told:
“To be a Man is to merely endure,
to accept what Life has limited you to,
and be content with the scraps you rightfully deserve-
Truth shall be told to you, and is not for the likes of you, to Seek”

The Man the Boy became awoke one night to a terrible vision,
Judgment Day… a human heart plucked still beating from rent chest,
Placed unceremoniously on a balance, and weighed on cosmic scales,
While a dark finger cloaked in Light pointed crookedly, demanded,
“Explain yourself, child, why weren’t you who we needed you to be?”

A flood of Dreams and Memories returned, decades past, forgotten annals
The Man feared the vision far more than his own demise;
decided he had but one thing left he had not already given away…
just was missing the cause worthy of the sacrifice,
The one he could lay his Life upon the altar for, for peace to find.

Discontent was he with any less than Joan of Arc herself placing a broadsword
aside the pulsing veins of his neck, appointing him a task for God, he said,
“I build my own pyre, and forsake all I love in this world;
Seeking the dark embrace of conflagration, I stand ready to burn
for all the mistakes and trespasses upon others’ hearts, now. Strike the blow and set me free”

Stepping sideways through time, the Man was told,
to do the impossible… breathe life back into a dead Boy.
For once you’ve conquered the fear of Death all that then remains,
is to vanquish the silliest trepidation of them all-
Namely, the fear we each of us must face so that we may learn to simply Live.

Things have come full circle, the Man is a Boy again,
the knighting has begun, the path is marked, the blade is drawn-
can he ascertain, though, the truth of words that whispered he need not be slain?
Is he ready to now embrace Life as wholly
As he once set upon his path to welcome Death in as a Lover?

Can be believe, I wonder, that sometimes a second chance is granted,
Even though unasked for?
My friend, as you seek to serve the forgotten children of the world,
Can you remember also to feed the wonder of a little Boy’s curiosity,
and give him a loving home and a space where he feels safe to come outside and play?







 

Reviews

[:)]

How many people fear death ceasing to live but waiting to die?
You've touched on one of my biggest fears.. A life in vein, shame on people for attempting to conform the children of the world into what they should be instead of what they are born to be.

Have I told you your one of my favorites up here? :)

[Larry Dyson]

Yes He Can..love the hidden meaning here...A most fortunate boy..."Things have come full circle, the Man is a Boy again,
the knighting has begun, the path is marked, the blade is drawn-
can he ascertain, though, the truth of words that whispered he need not be slain?
Is he ready to now embrace Life as wholly
As he once set upon his path to welcome Death in as a Lover?

Can be believe, I wonder, that sometimes a second chance is granted,
Even though unasked for?
My friend, as you seek to serve the forgotten children of the world,
Can you remember also to feed the wonder of a little Boy’s curiosity,
and give him a loving home and a space where he feels safe to come outside and play? "A worthy choice for the future..

[Tate Morgan]

What a deep write this is though i love the ending

[lawrence bear]

this reminds of the that story of king Arthur, from a boy who pulled the sword from the stone and became king. reading this i vision the knights of the round table and Lancerlot, and the epic battle at the end. as a boy growing up, I was fascinated with this era. Of course this is not what you meant, but my imagination took over :)

[kmartell]

My goodness you are a good writer. I won't envy, but my goodness i wish i could write as well. A practiced imagination has grown some more.

[Emily B]

I'm so glad these words came out of the closet just now, I read them as though they were brand new

[Charles]

What a wonderful example of ekphrasis - just great. I do struggle a bit with the last line of the 3rd stanza (The one he could lay his Life upon the altar for, for peace to find)... I think it's the way 'for peace to find' seems an inverted sentence or seems tacked on in its present form. I don't think the 'in' adds anything after 'Death' in the 6th stanza, and I believe there's a typo in the first line of the last stanza - should 'be' really be 'he' or maybe 'we'? Yes, I nit-pick but only when everything else is so perfect. This one gets added to my library post haste. :-)

[Clockwork]

I am not sure when men have always been so burdened. We should have strength and force, but no heart. We should be a gender of warriors who seldom laugh or dance. That standard is one of insanity. Those pyrite ingots are poured into the cosmic scales, the scaled of social trial, and being convicted we become blind. We crusade, soul search, and march. We even go so far as to kill our inner child to meet the demands, to fulfill the commandments of fools.

Those of us who remain awake must remember to dance. We must remember to release the children of our souls, and rescue those who sink.

I think that this would be great for a story. It does not have all the poetic pieces that some of your others do, but it is strong and resounding. I think your strongest poetic stanzas are the last three. They have an otherworldly undertone while remaining in this one at the same time.

[An owl on the moon]

What a powerful write, stunning in its scope (spanning the ages) as well as its depth (reaching within the heart of a child). You words paint pictures of imaginations giving hope and fire to the world anew. Amazing work!

[Through the Gateway]

What a marvelously beautiful write, Marie! The questioning we all have when we begin to feel as though we have lived a life in vain. Something do die for...I need something to die for!

And yet, as you point out, we need not to find something to die for, but something to live for.

I hope this boy does recognize he has a second chance, and that he learns how do decide to live everyday. I like to think he has found something he can hold on to, his life worthy of a cause.

Brillant write, Marie. Brilliant.