From the top of his castle mountain
The lonely emperor surveyed
Why is no one approaching?
Why does no one obey?
They’re all just so terribly boring
Why does no one venture to play?

He was a wise man, had greatness
But somewhere along the way
Confronted with dimwits and wankers
And their self importance on display
He decided to retreat to his peak
Reached zero tolerance for what they say

From there he could observe each perspective,
Had knowledge of every view
But at the top it can also get lonely
And with no one to question what’s true
The emperor often felt he was righteous
And others should best meekly ensue.

His rooster cried cock-a-doodle-doo every morning
And he happily stepped to the plate
From the centre of his private universe
He would sometimes believe in the hate
With no one to nurture his chicken
He spent much energy being irate

The mirror behind his throne was gathering dust
As over his shoulder he never did see
With no one to hold it up to his face
He sat and wondered how it can be
That all are so afraid to speak up
Why is there no one to truly challenge me?

When out of the mist a child appeared
That was not afraid to climb up
Pure and frank, not a bone out of place
It asked the emperor to stop
With honest intention it pointed to believing in love
And told him to clean his own mirror up

The child saw him naked, not blinking an eye
No questions, no judgement, no fear
It didn’t even think twice
Just shouldered the burden to bear
Together they looked in the mirror
And what did the emperor see there?

His brightness relfected in the eyes of a child
The wonder, the beauty, the world to create
The child knew no games, it just wanted to play
And reach for horizons unknown, from curiosity’s state
Not perfect, but searching, admitting when wrong
Trading happy for right, feeling love not hate

With this revelation the emperor saw
That unconditional kindness exists
Even if it is rare, it’s worth believing
Why deny yourself the promise of bliss
By only residing on your own terms
And let opportunity to grow go amiss

Wise to admit his judgemental lapse
The emperor, enlightened, immediately knew
To wield a mirror for others,
Only has value if you dare look in it too
There you might find someone positive at heart
In the child that mirrors it back to you

©2013