A FREE MAN

A man who’s worth much in gold,

Who’s taken many risks, quite bold,

Who’s got much more than he can spend,

Waste, enjoy, or go out and lend,

Then, I ask, to all humanity,

Is such a man free, and at peace within?

Or, perhaps a man who wields much power,

Who might change the world in an hour,

Who’s got the common man at his feet,

And the entire world, his sayings, does repeat.

Then, again I ask, to all mankind; bold,

Isn’t it, except peace, everything else, such a man holds?

Or consider a man of great fame,

On every tongue, does ‘lie’ his name.

The whole world is awaiting his next feat,

So they can prostrate, and touch his feet.

Then again I ask, you and me,

Transient glory; can truly love, such a man ever see?

Or, consider now the intellectual,

The heights of thought, his abode perpetual,

One, whom the entire world knows,

The whole world to his knowledge bows.

Then again to you, I ask,

In false glory, how long, can such a man bask?

Or maybe, a man, for whom no task is hard,

Who, in every field has triumphed and stared.

Brave, resourceful, energetic and quick,

Clever, strong, indeed a maverick!

Once again so boldly I ask,

False grandeur; how long will it last?

I’ve given you five cases to consider,

And before long, I’ll hand you another,

Yet, first, let’s answer the questions I’ve raised,

About the men, so great, I’ve praised it!

Is your answer, yeah or nay?

About such men, there is more to say.

First, consider; gold’s lure is vast,

Yet sooner or later, it will take you to a task,

And though, in pretentious euphoria, he may bask,

Love, joy, riches; they seldom last!

So I say, a wealthy man, does not always, freely go,

And even his life may be full of woe.

Then what about the man with great power,

Why even it may not outlast the hour;

And what does man gain from the power man gives?

He’ll seek more power, as long as he lives.

His life will, but be, full of sorrow,

This very power will bring him, to a worse tomorrow!

And let’s not even talk about fame,

It leaves a man quite lame!

It goes suddenly, leaving not, a bit,

Yet, once tasted, one can’t live without it.

Fame indeed is a fickle friend,

Once found, then quickly lost its usual trend.

Consider now, the intellectuals case,

In his high thoughts, he finds solace.

Though he thinks, he is no one's slave,

He’s something worse; no love, no grace.

Lost in his thoughts, pretends to be brave,

Can such a man, ever freely go to his grave?

And, what about the able man?

Well, all too short is his life span.

When all his bad deeds are done,

His old age will be like a sad setting sun.

No fellow-man will want to hold him,

Only, at his end, time will scold him.

Now that we’ve seen these five men,

How sad! Their lives do make my pen.

Let’s learn from these men; such lives do live,

Reform ourselves, and learn to give.

The only free man is the one who can say,

To the world, time and even death,

Forget; let us in Gods glory sing,

The whole world, together; without jealousy, bring.

The one who walks, his own free will,

Whose life, does immortality bring

The one, who’s heart, the good lord does fill,

This is the only one, who is free within.