Let It Shine

The guy who hides his light
under a bushel ought to be told
to let it shine. He won’t push
back the edge of darkness if
he waits to be noticed. Let it shine,
for god’s sake, we need all the light
we can get.

You know damn well the guy
without a light nor even a bushel,
would give his eyeteeth for just
a tiny candle. Then he might brag
about it until you thought it was
a torch. No objections from me,
at least he’d have something
worth a shout. And anyway,
as the Master said to his Ass,
It’s all right to make the big noise
if you have no close neighbors.

    Original Citation
    Wormwood Review 22.1 (1982) 38.
    Word Count
    115
    Original Publication
    Date Published
    1982
    Complete Poems
    428
    Theme(s)
    First Line
    The guy who hides his light
    Poetic Form
    open
    Twitter Quote
    Let it shine, / for god’s sake, we need all the light / we can get.