Truth be told, I’m petrified.
The world’s “success” can’t be denied.
We must fight.
We must run.
We must race ’til day is done.
We must cheat.
We must win.
We must hurry, now “Begin!” . . .
And though I know it isn’t true,
deep down I’m scared—just like you.
If I do not join the din,
what, my friends, is my fate then?
…
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Great lines Jessica…For success we must do anything and everything possible…
That’s what the world says, anyway… I’m struggling in my mind with what the world says is success and what success actually means to me. Thanks for reading and commenting, Harsha! Always good to hear from you. :)
Agree, these are great lines and pretty perceptive in the way the world is working these days…(broken). The cheat to win mentality is turning up in every industry, and it is scary. Doing things the right way, will be the difficult choice, but at the end of the day we can sleep well.
If you have the time, and want to see how badly the “wrong way” is becoming the only way, here is perhaps the best article I have read in a decade. http://features.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2013/05/15/ranbaxy-fraud-lipitor/?src=longreads
This is what investigative journalism is about. This poem is titled so appropriately. It really is a bit sad. Nice work!
I haven’t had time to read the whole thing yet, but thank you for that article. What a sad story. I guess that fact that these companies got caught shows that, ultimately, the “wrong way” doesn’t win. The funny thing about this poem is that what came out is not actually what I had intended. I’d planned to take it in a very different direction… Alas, next time… What is scary to me is when people completely lose their consciences. This is something that is hard to comprehend… Glad you liked the poem. :)
I think the poem is perfect, it hits on a topic that it seems everyone is dealing with these days at some level. Cheers!
Thank you so much. Your comment made me smile. I’m glad to know it’s a topic others can relate to. Nice to know I’m not alone! Hope you had a wonderful weekend. :)
It’s sometimes very difficult to live by certain principles in the rat-race, huh? In the end though Jessica, inside you’ll be more at peace and you’ll have less health issues. You be you and the rest will take care of itself. :)
I like that, Professor. “You be you.” If everyone would listen to their hearts and consciences from day one, the world would be a much better place. Thanks as always for following along… :)
It’s an order Jessica! ;)
Aye, aye, Captain!
Good aim with this poem.
Thanks, Mike. It’s funny. Sometimes I start a poem thinking I’m going to say one thing and end up saying another. But that’s not always a bad thing. Thanks for reading and commenting! :)
very true!
Yes… And sad, too!
Walden
You think so, Hoss? It’s time for me to pull out my old poetry book again. To be honest, I think this is one of my worst.
Very true, but don’t lose yourself. Be true to yourself. Success sometimes does come with a price, but is that price too high. Only you can determine that.
Peace!!!
Wise words, Frank. Very wise words. Thanks for reading and commenting! It means the world. :)
Inspired. Fired up. After reading this!
Great thoughts, Jessica. :)
Thanks, Tanumoy. I have yet to attempt a haiku. You may inspire me to try soon. :)
dear Jessica: patience, bravery and generosity … these are the keys to success. every artist faces resistance, the world will always tell you different … don’t listen, and just practice these three things. xo tony
tony… patience. this one is hardest for me. this poem went in a far different direction than planned, honestly. perhaps i shouldn’t admit that publicly, but being true to myself has never been a problem for me. it’s… everything else… thank you… xo jess
So true. We really have to decide what is success’ worth to us. In the end we all end up dead, at least the body, and we can’t take any of our achievements with us, so I’m constantly asking myself what is the point, as far as worldy success is concerned. Our time goes by so fast and when are we going to take the time just to enjoy life?
Very true! It’s why I’ve recently been really questioning what I want to do with and where I want to go in my life. Why settle for status quo? And what is success, really? I’ve written about my thoughts on success before, but I think often the world’s view of success is really quite skewed. I never was happier when I had more money or things. True happiness comes from our relationships and from within.
Thanks so much for reading and commenting!
Hi Jessica,
Your short verse creates a great perspective. Why this compulsion to conform/ Why this need to seek acceptance of others when in that acceptance, the criteria is all about them and not about me?
Shakti
That is a really great observation, Shakti. And that’s always been something I’ve questioned: What is “success,” really? I’ve written about it before, but my idea of success if far different from the world’s most of the time. And if that’s true, you’re absolutely right: What *does* their criteria mean? Nothing!
Thanks so much for reading and commenting! :) Jessica