Fade to Black (poem)

By Luke Labern

On reflection, most things are simple:
The talent is to move ahead in mind
And shape the world, and you, in time;
He who can do that can do anything.
But when the particulars are strangely lacking
Though the principles remain as strong as ever,
You must monitor your momentum
And give authenticity your backing.
The enterprise, the world, the man:
Every collection of consciousness is the same
When the heat cools, and all that remains is the name.
So what did you stand for?
The only question worth asking
Is the one that upsets you most:
Comfort won't fulfil your dreams—
Sacrifice the shell for the host
And be who you know you are.
Doubt is just the first:
Here comes challenge after challenge—
Here comes the tumour, the loss,
The injury, the truth, the hearse.
You and I will die but we rarely know it:
Listen, then, to a serendipitous poet
When he tells you that what you love
Is all the more important, because of that—
You trust yourself, you love yourself,
You fulfil your fucking dreams:
Everything is exactly what it seems
In the privacy of your mind, and life:
The purpose of your existence is to nourish genius
Before you fade to black.

Promise me that.