Enlightenment

I watched the world before my eyes,
With studious intent;
The truth passed by me in disguise,
Along the path I went.

For wisdom rests not with the strong,
And human pride will lie;
How sad to be content though wrong,
And just about to die.

A simple man with humbled heart
Walked hand in hand with truth;
The two were never long apart,
In old age as in youth.

He listened, and it is believed,
Enlightened in his mind,
He lived upon what he received,
And not what he could find.

Our race, at first deceived by sight,
Was exiled from its sphere;
Now the race, to be made right,
Must be content to hear.

For in the streets, there is a voice,
As wisdom cries aloud;
The humble heart will soon rejoice
More than the rich and proud.

This poem was a finalist in the August 2025 poetry contest