Young Marks

i was born

to potential and limitless grace

with a flashing of light it was gone

when the smoke cleared

cast in ash and bone

i was raised

to obey and respect but

at the edge of the lake was

din and disruption

when the water splashed across my back it burned

for the dead there's no comfort in fate

and the light exists mainly to blind

and the purpose of living is life

i wasn't chosen

i didn't choose the path

my heart's not built to hold his love

i was schooled in a place of tradition

but something was missing

in faces of classmates

eyes that glared too blue, too deep

in the church where they led us to worship

fighting to pull it apart with my nails

as they chewed solid oak beneith me

for the blessed who cleave truth from the lies

and the light exists mainly to guide

when life after death is a prize

i want to reach out

i want to shake your hand

your war is noble and divine