Paint a Picture

If Hope was painted as a picture, how might it be painted?

A lone black dot in a sea of white canvas

given perspective by a line on all sides.

Gazing at the promised land the dot notices that it ebbs like the tides

and flows not straight and narrow but still stretches far beyond his reach.

Although he may be doubtful he feels it's his duty to teach

other little specks about what's out there, beyond the tide.

So he instills in them an eagerness not to bide

their time but to first learn and then fly.

Their happiness sparks a fire in his eye

and propels him to do more than just sit and wait.

He knows he can't just take the bait

of the men fishing for both his life and his soul.

But he also knows he can't just take a stroll

to the other side and join the fisherman at the shore.

His students already know, there must be more

and so away they swim, calling for justice.

He cries out in vain against their ignorance

but already they lay harpooned, bleeding a poisoned red.

The dot wishes they hadn't listened to anything he'd said

and swears to bring others over in their place.

The fishermen chuckle and wait by their base

for the next wave…and the next…and the next.