by Ernest L. Norman
There was the woodsman who dwelt in the forest with his wife
That she did bear him a son ~ and he grew up to be a stalwart lad,
strong of heart and clear of eye.
Now it came to him, as he slept and in a vision,
that he saw a lustrous gem,
A pearl of great and wondrous size.
So it came to pass, that he must go upon the face of all lands
And cross the rivers and the seas thereof
So that he might seeketh out this priceless pearl.
Yet none he asked and all he saw, knew not of such a gem.
And so it was, that he did come where stood
a great and wondrous temple,
That sitting there within the lofty pillared hall
were many of the great and wise old men.
And each did proffer him a jewel ~
a jewel of wealth, a jewel of power.
Or a jewel of many of the things that are of earthly desire.
Though he saw them thus in all their blazing glory, he liked them not;
For as he touched them, all did crumble from his touch.
And so he cryeth out in anguish and despair,
and fleeth from the moated palace walls.
Now, once again beneath the forest shade,
he did seek to wet his anguished brow
and slack his thirst in shaded pool.
But ere his lips did touch the cooling waters mirrored there
Within his heart he saw reflected there,
a great and beauteous pearl.
As he looked in wondrous awe,
he saw that words were written there.
The words that would remain unto him ~
the lasting glory of all time
For these were simply ~ “Peace of Mind.”
Excerpt from The Anthenium