Benefaction

Do not abide with those of empty charge
Do not entertain their rapacious glance
and barren perception, their lack of grace
obsequious speech with no substance or strength
and if their interest is solely your anatomy
as lovely as that might be
but not the art you craft and bleed from your soul
then leave them cold and unattended, forsaken
by your voice and no longer held in even memory’s eye
Let your cry be heard by those who would listen
And not the tone-deaf ears of the now no more
Craft words drawn from love and from sorrow
From darkness and light, into those far reaching
Spaces of your reader’s minds
This calling, this career, this vocation of virtuous imagery
Would be wasted on those you will not see
Who would not hear, who would not discern
The driven passion on your art
So, write then! For those who can conceive
Another world, another time, another life