I love this deep and meaningful poem by American poet William Stafford. It speaks to me of the importance of being who we really are and the importance of letting others be who they are. It is only as we get in touch with the treasure of our own true self that we can be truly awake and offer the world around the gift that is ours and ours alone to give.
If you don't know the kind of person I am
and I don't know the kind of person you are
a pattern that others made may prevail in the world
and following the wrong god home we may miss our star.
For there is many a small betrayal in the mind,
a shrug that lets the fragile sequence break
sending with shouts the horrible errors of childhood
storming out to play through the broken dyke.
And as elephants parade holding each elephant's tail,
but if one wander's the circus won't find the park,
I call it cruel and maybe the root of all cruelty
to know what occurs but not recognize the fact.
And so I appeal to a voice, to something shadowy,
a remote important region in all who talk:
though we could fool each other, we should consider-
lest the parade of our mutual life get lost in the dark.
For it is important that awake people be awake,
or a breaking of the line may discourage them back to sleep;
the signals we give-yes or no, or maybe-should be clear:
the darkness around us is deep.
