Authenticity’s Undaunted Pride

Parents with hearts heavy and hopeful,

Hire guardians of knowledge,

To sculpt their children’s futures,

To chisel away the rough edges of average.

In the dim glow of desk lamps,

Children labor over equations and essays,

Their minds tethered to expectations,

Their spirits yearning for freedom.

Their tutors, with patience and precision,

Unravel the knots of confusion,

Weaving threads of understanding,

Into the fabric of young minds.

Yet…

Beneath the layers of learned facts,

Mediocrity whispers softly,

A shadow in the background,

A truth unspoken, unseen.

For in the pursuit of perfection,

In the race to outshine,

The essence of an individual’s reality

Is often left behind,

Adequate ability being labeled as mediocre.

And so, in the mindscape of quiet desires,

Where dreams are polished,

And courage of the authentic

Find solace in being all they are,

Ridicule of being merely adequate remains,

A silent attachment,

Hidden but never gone.

Even as the tongue of Ambition’s whip cracks,

Challenging Adequate as a paltry acceptance

In the dance between the two,

A delicate balance forms.

Dreams meet reality,

Possibilities are born.

Ambition pushes forward,

Eyes on distant stars,

Competency holds its ground,

Having found purchase in the now of its reality.

Together…

A compatible life of lows and highs is woven,

Where dreams are pursued,

And the courage to accept the goal,

Having realized an authentic self.