The Lecture
'No-one can help you,' he said,
'You should have learnt that by now, at your age.
You are your own possession.
You are your own home you live inside.
Look after it well for you are all you have.
And you only get one go at this.
Everything else is nothing.
Everyone else is fleeting as it suits them,
or suits fate.
Except sometimes family, if you're lucky,
will give support through the rough,
although by your efforts only
can you escape and cope.
Listen to me, I've done it,' he said,
'I'm a success'.
previous poem
next poem