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Wish

Posted by Yeshiva Guy | Posted in Poetry | Posted on 12-11-2009

6

What in the world is this blog turning me into? Poems? Really, I need to get a life.

orb

A Will ‘o the wisp; a light,

forever luminescent, shining bright.

It beckons, it calls, speeding forward.

And I, watching, toward.

Dipping and gliding,

shimmering and sliding,

through valleys and hills,

It goes where it wills.

And I, watching, attracted.

But what about it?

Does it know my desires?

Does it care if we’re fit?

Should I catch it one day,

My fears to allay,

Is what it’ll do- or so they say,

When one catches it; one day.

All will be perfect.

Problems; no effect.

A globe that is green,

World peace, our planet; clean.

All this and more

When you catch this glowing orb

That dances and skips

Holding it tight, with a firm grip.

It’ll ask you, what is your wish?

Only an instant, now to fish

For your heart’s desire,

For what you aspire

So after months, on a journey so cold,

Demanding, days of courage and bold,

You at last capture, on ice filled plains,

The light it shimmers, waxes and wanes.

And in a magical moment,

In a mind blowing instant,

You finally know, what it is that you want,

And the orb, it glows, with soft subtle taunt.

For your yearning was not, for expensive clothes, store bought;

Nor to be a boxer, uncontested, with battles hard fought.

Or even an astronaut, space walking in orbit

Or a chess master, executing brilliant gambit,

No, you didn’t want to be, a star of Olympiad,

Nor CEO of Microsoft, every inch Versace clad.

What you now know you craved for…

Can’t be obtained in any store.

Or even something that could possibly be supplied,

By the all-powerful orb, even should it have tried.

You see, your innermost craving,

Your secret wish unfulfilled,

The thing you’d work ages for, slaving.

You have finally realized…

Is to know what you want, to be clear

About your ambition, and to straightly steer

Without ambiguity, as a vision to appear,

To simply know. That is the thing, so dear.

So now that you’ve reached that, the ultimate knowledge,

It somehow isn’t something, like life on the edge,

Or ’til-now hidden wisdom, or something you fear,

Attainable only, by catching that sphere.

Like instant flame, and sudden epiphany,

You perceive the work of years so many-

That will be required to gain, admittance to your wish.

But its no problem, ‘cuz its the scratch of the itch…

That is the gateway to pleasure,

And without it you can’t, attain the treasure.

So you don’t mind the years of toil, ahead of you now.

The years of labor, sweat of the brow.

The only question still lingering,

As that spherule you’re fingering,

Is why did you need to catch,

And hold on and to latch,

That teasing object, which in the end nothing did,

You suddenly comprehend, is vs. your ego your id.

And in fact was a, complete waste of time.

All this you could have perceived yourself- without rhyme.

So next time simply, stay in your armchair,

And figure it out- in the comfort of lair.

What it is that you want,

What it is that you wish

For desire, as is known, is a dish-

Best served warm, in comfort of home.

(Photo credit to hannahcolligan)

Comments (6)

  • halfshared says:

    Wow. Wow. That was awesome. I like your poetry :-) .

  • SIS says:

    What are you trying to say, that “ein simcha k’hataras hasfeikos,” but once you realize what direction you’re headed in, it’s okay not to know the exact details? I think this is too deep for me; I’m not getting it.

    • It isn’t all that deep. Like you said, it’s a little “ein simcha”.

      But more important is the Yiddishe concept of “ameilus”…that is what is really supposed to be at play here. We don’t want the shortcut, because it would deprive us of the pain/effort involved, which would deprive us of the directly connected reward and satisfaction that comes with pain.

      Like the bodybuilder who spends endless hours sculpting his physique- the pain and work is precisely what he needs to achieve his goal.

      The moshel is inadequate, but you get the idea.
      Reply

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