Notes About The Poem
10/1/2025 for Rumi Quotes Poetry Contest sponsored by Sotto Poet
"Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself" ~ Rumi
The Lesson
When I was but seven years old,
up on a mountain trail,
I was taught a deep lesson.
Let me tell you the tale.
My dad rented us some horses
for our transportation,
and first the animals' owner
gave us education:
Tug the reins left or tug them right,
to get your horse to turn.
Yank back to stop and kick to go -
I was so quick to learn.
Similar to a bike I thought,
and for each winding turn,
I gave my horse a guiding tug,
Yes, I was quick to learn.
When the mounts in front stopped
I would give him a yank,
and when it was time to resume,
I kicked him in the flank.
I imagined this living being
as a kind of machine -
instead of a heart or a brain -
having levers unseen.
After trudging on for an hour,
my horse broke to a run,
galloping fast in a dead sprint,
a bullet from a gun.
He knew ev'ry turn of the trail,
and didn't need my help.
I was hanging on for dear life,
too scared to scream or yelp.
He raced under low hanging limbs,
so, I had to lay flat.
And after a what seemed a mile
he stopped then, just like that.
So it was, I learned my lesson,
from my teacher the horse,
I had to change myself, not him,
then left him alone, of course.
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