(Dedicated to Sir Mel Samarita)
I met a learned man who said
“The world belongs to men
of higher calibers…”
which puzzled me beyond belief
the thought, the notion,
No—
the mere suggestion of his
inadequacy
or perhaps humbling humility
and the idea of an existing set of
“Higher calibers”—
of stronger, faster, larger
Bullets
fired from longer, sharper, grander
Guns
that could tear down old walls
and break new grounds
better than him.
Yet I am fully convinced
he had only half awakened
but is already
aware enough
to dream
of newer grounds
behind even older walls,
built by Bias,
funded by Ego,
maintained by Pride,
that those of “higher calibers”
aim not to
penetrate
but to sustain.
For this learned man is not for
replacing
high walls with even higher
barriers
nor massing, measuring, or matching
“Calibers.”
Rather, this one is for
creating a world
where the anti-materiel,
is no longer
anti-material;
where the scholar is
above all,
scholarly
and no pint of politics
can deter
intelligence.
Then all my doubts were put
to rest
for I, at last, knew
That this bullet had seen all of this
and he had only just left his
barrel.