You Wouldn’t Know by Looking at Me – A Poem

You wouldn’t know by looking at me

what with my quiet countenance

and my calm sincerity

that I follow no God

that I follow no creed

but my own

that I rely on my own

experiences and choices

to guide me

protect me

direct me

to do what is right

and I don’t need

anyone else to tell me

what I can or cannot do

I am my own person

I cannot believe

that there could be

such suffering in this world

if there were

some sort of god

some deity

watching over me

watching us all

I cannot believe

He would let

so many innocents die

without reason

I cannot believe

that He has a plan for all of us

that we all have fates

preordained by Him

predestined by Him

without a choice

for me

or for you

I cannot believe

that such a being could exist

that such a cruel and fickle being

could control my fate

I cannot believe that…

But you wouldn’t know that

not by just looking at me

you couldn’t know that

I bare my soul every day

to this apathetic world

to this cruel world

to this indifferent world

through my pen

and my ink

and my paper

the tools of my trade

my passion

my love

that I lay my heart

on a gilded platter

from which the world feasts

day in

and day out

until I get it back

mangled and ravaged

by the scavengers

by war

by hate

by fear

by suffering

and when my bleeding heart

returns to me

I am left hurt and broken

and sorrowful

but then that thin ray of light

shines

illuminating the darkness

casting back the shadows

bringing back hope

and a promise

that there is something better-

something better…

And you wouldn’t know by looking at me

that terror gripped me

possessed me

controlled me

as I watched my baby sister

that beautiful child

wracked with tremors

as her tiny body

seized,

that such fear

lay so close to my heart

but I had hope

and hope prevailed

and the little girl

has grown so much

into such a lovely child

with that flaxen hair

and those cornflower eyes

and I am so thankful

and so proud of her

because she pulled through

a tiny survivor

but I will never forget

that awesome terror…

You wouldn’t know

couldn’t know by looking at me

that I believe strongly

in the power

of the individual

to exact change

in the nation

in the world

that knowledge is

the key to that magnificent power

so keep on learning

because no one knows everything

and we are never

too full of knowledge

because there always is

always will be

more to learn

more to teach

more to create

more to share

it goes on and on

never ending

forever

in a continuous

and amazing

cycle of knowledge…

I will never stop

trying to be the best

I can be

never stop

writing

because it is my very soul

my very essence

my very being

my very power

it is that through which

I can affect the world

change the world

But you wouldn’t know me

not by looking at me

you wouldn’t really KNOW me

but if you listen really well

and understand my words

perhaps you’ll come to know me

for who I am

as I hope

that you will strive to do

because I think

that everyone’s worth knowing,

don’t you?