Reflections

The Pond in the Forest

There's a pond in the forest,

one rumored to glow

in the dark of night

as the water flows.

There's a pond in the forest,

of which the parents would say

to their naïve children

"The water is poison! Do stay away!"

"It puts you to sleep!"

"It makes you a slave

to the spirits of the pond,"

that's what they say.

"You'll be addicted

to the saccharine taste."

"The water is poison!"

That's what they say.

They never bothered

to get their story straight

"The water is poison!"

That's what they'll say.

The truth is:

they don't want you to change.

They want their obedient little children

listening to everything they say.

I went to the pond.

I saw it glow.

I took a sip.

As the water flowed.

I drank the water

and it changed me.

I became

who I'd rather be.