‘History’ and Other Poetry by Steve Johns

History

There’s a story in every piece of history.
Each time I probe into a part of history,
I see wars, plagues, triumphs, romances, and conflicts
Between the poor and the rich. History inflicts
Me with memories of pain, and also soothes me
With memories of hope. History ought to be
Used to teach one’s self what has been done right, and what
Has been done wrong. By reading and learning from what
Has happened in the past, I know what I can do
To move forward in life. No longer will I do
The same routine as I did in the past. I will
Become a brand new person; I will not sit still
And watch myself fade into history. I will
Throw out the old and welcome the new self. I will
Crawl out of the darkness of the past, and into
A future in which I can make myself pull through.

Poor Poets

Poor Poets publish poetry for free.
No new poet ever has it easy.
A poet must work hard to earn a wage.
It is not easy to write like a sage.
Poetry is the art of making a
Dream come to reality like a ray
Bursting forth from the sun and into the
Earth’s atmosphere to bring forth light and the
Blessing of life.  Poets have a duty
To inspire all people, and to be
The best writers the world has ever seen.
As people mature and get old, the scene
About life begins to end and we must
Be prepared for the time when we are dust.

What Is an Actor?

What is the world to an actor?
Is it only a distracter?
Or is it to him a real place?
If the world is a stage, the face
Of an actor never changes.
He is always acting; he is
Always living in a dream world.
Life isn’t real to him. The world
Of the stage and the world of the
Actual are both one and the
Same thing. The actual truth of
The actor’s role is that all of
Us also play his part in our
Daily lives. We are our own star.

Steve Johns is a poet and playwright living in DeKalb, Illinois.