Gordon Nightingale
It’s a very thin line twixt the truth and the lies,
Between love and hate and the sea and the skies,
Going forward or backward, for better for worse,
Stagnating or changing, a blessing or a curse,
Planning ahead or simply leave it to fate,
Leaving too early and arriving too late.
Whatever is done be it wrong be it right,
Blind to the truth or have second sight.
To fix what is broken, being cruel to be kind,
Expressing concern or is it “Oh, never mind.”
It’s a very thin line twixt the pleasure and pain,
With so much to lose and so very little to gain,
Laughing or crying, succeed or it’s fail,
Treasure the freedom to choose your own jail.
Choose well from the options twixt advance and retreat.
Question the answer. Is it honesty or deceit?
Question the wisdom. Is it give? Is it take?
Be the first or the last, it’s decisions you make.
Generous or greedy? You reap what you sow,
You can ascend to the heights or descend to the low.
It is a thin line between the longing and loathing,
Naked to the world or camouflaged in clothing,
Vowing to break free of the die that is cast,
Avoiding the future to meet with the past,
In joy or in sorrow, to separate or blend,
Live and let die from the start to the end.
Shallow or deep end you’re in over your head.
Despair for the living and hope for the dead.
You can be strong while many others are weak
How well can you hide what all others seek?
It’s a very thin line between the brave and the meek,
In calmness or panic, being silent or speak.
In peace and in war, co-operate or resistance,
Give up now or cope with dogged persistence.
It’s not simply a matter of maybe or must,
Dullness or brightness, shiny or rust,
You may be flat out on a slippery slope,
Learning to resign or may be to hope.
Whatever the reason, drought or deluge,
Try walking and running in somebody’s shoes.
Gordon Nightingale is a local author and poet and the Convenor of the Daylesford U3A Writers’ Group.
