Two poems by MH Clay

Little

We are little men

Standing small

Against our massive concrete sprawl

Little lives

Lived in turn

But little matter to the Great Big

Little ideas

Little words

Piece them together

Little grunts and gasps

To make a big noise

To be a little big

But still little

Little time to be here

Little years to be noticed

Is no little thing to bear

On the way out

Have a little fun

Exit with a little laugh

Leadership

Only the torn ones

            Those who struggle in the mind

Will take the lead

Those who pass from white to black

Endeavoring to hover in the gray

Who venture to step out

Straight into where black conceals

Where feet may hold or quickly slip away

The timid will follow

Would rather hold back

            Not walk into unknown cold

Would have the warming light against their backs

And move in steps that others took before

For these

Some guarantee of comfort must avail

But the conflicted

Each step they take

Each passing place

Brings questions

About what changes would have made

What other paths might have pulled

To weigh the reason right or left

That always must abandon one

To take the other

What implications of each choice

What love to keep, which pain to bear

And doubt to ponder

Especially the one that questions

Whether we were meant

To walk into the light instead

MH Clay is a poet and playwright residing in Dallas, TX.  An active member of the Dallas poetry scene since 2003, he has performed as a spoken word artist in venues throughout the D/FW Metroplex.  His one-act plays have been produced by various North Texas theater groups.  He is the Poetry Editor for Mad Swirl at www.madswirl.com and co-hosts Mad Swirl's monthly Open Mic every first Wednesday at the Absinthe Lounge.  Find him on FaceBook at http://facebook.com/michael.clay .