Does a Rose Say No To Life?
05 DEC 2002
If life be a rose, those who pick it may find
both petal and thorn, sweet and the unkind;
and essence as well as the outer husk,
for each is essential, both prick and musk.
If life be negation, that null space filled
with trials and hardship and tests of will,
it is also a loud, resounding yes;
for to be true life it cannot be less.
For life to be lived fully it must contain
a mixture of sorrow, pleasure and pain;
Each one has its place in the plan of things,
we must not spurn the lessons each one brings.
Just life? Just a rose? Just a yes or no?
It is only belief that makes it so.
The Anti-War Codicil
Crank up the war machine, conscript the poor
The wisest solution is we must to war
For we are insulted, and slighted, and more
We must have a cause, a wolf there at the door
We lead by example, as everyone knows,
a emperor naked, in praise of our clothes;
yet no one makes mention, and why, you suppose?
that our face is disfigured from lacking a nose.
And who are we fighting, well, we're not quite sure,
but it's doubtless an evil that threatens the pure;
a menace to freedom, and all that's demure;
and it's symptoms, not causes we're aiming to cure.
So let fly the cannon, and loose the war plane -
Let not rhetoric slow us, or try to explain;
There is no time to waste should be our proud refrain!
It is enthusiasm that conquers our pain.
Now, to those who still wonder, and question this fate,
we must sacrifice freedom for good of the state;
and give up on convenience before it's too late,
think of all those brave souls that have naught on their plate.
If were were in Rome, we would require a Nero,
A leader with vision, who lets our fire grow;
With flourish and pomp we will declare a hero;
The score? Give us one, and give everyone zero.
