Theft of an Ideal

He learnt to be a man under peculiar conditions.
He was thrown together haphazardly;
but a girl first learns that she is responsible.

Guard raised and voice lowered as munitions,
graced with a laughter that rings too sweetly—
he learnt to be a man under peculiar conditions.

The world is a man’s charge, a claim insoluble:
one always respects a man’s property,
so, a girl first learns that she is responsible.

This man accepts his charge, chained by commission(s),
and when he bleeds, he works with hands and thighs dirty.
He learnt to be a man under peculiar conditions.

Each bleeding man hides that he is bleeding, until he drops.
This man drains, stiches, and bandages, until he drops.
He learnt to be a man under peculiar conditions,
but this boy first learnt that he is responsible.


Recommendation: The Beautiful Failure of Being a Man by Devon Price.

updatedupdated2025-01-132025-01-13