Juri Hajong Poet Free verse

Ethereal eye

Dad, someone told me that he’s a bad person,Did you see him do something bad?
No,they told me,
And you believed them?,
I don’t know,
His father smiled a little.

Then why are you seeing people with your ears,
when you have two eyes?”
The boy thought about it.
Later, while walking past the hills, he asked,
Dad, why do people climb mountains?”.

To reach the top, I suppose
Just to reach the top?,
His father looked at the mountain for a moment,
Maybe.

Then he asked,
When you climb a mountain,
are you doing it so people can look at you from below,
or so you can look at the world from above?.

The boy looked up,
I think, I want to see the world,
His father nodded
Then keep climbing.

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Alison A Smith September 28, 2026 at 12:36 AM A quietly powerful free-verse dialogue, this poem turns a child’s innocent questions into a profound meditation on judgment, perception, and purpose. The recurring father–son exchange gives the piece a natural, contemplative rhythm, while the mountain becomes a graceful symbol for choosing one’s own higher view of the world. The ending is especially resonant: “Then keep climbing” feels both tenderly parental and universally encouraging.