I thought I knew then – 
when I’d been empowered 
by the words:
“I am the master of my fate.
I am the captain of my soul.”*

But I failed
to understand 
the detriment
of believing only in
my 
self.

Propped up 
by this falsehood,
I scurried about
in life
thinking only of 
my 
self;
my contributions 
met with strife.

Brick wall
after brick wall,
leading only to another…
…what must I do 
to impart the greatness of 
my 
self
to the other? 

Oh, the energy I burned
so long and
so fruitlessly
thinking I knew
thinking it true.

Blessed be me,
now entrusted with this:
it is the burning of
my 
self
that masters my bliss. 

*William Ernest Henley in “Invictus”