The Truth Won’t Die
—a villanelle for Charlie Kirk
They clung to hate and jealousy and lies,
While he spoke words that could have set them free.
They tried to kill the truth but truth won’t die.
At first they used profanity and cries
Of outrage while debating angrily.
They clung to hate and jealousy and lies.
The evidence was plain but they denied
The obvious. He faced them fearlessly.
They tried to kill the truth but truth won’t die.
He looked his haters calmly in the eye,
And took a sip of mint and honey tea.
They clung to hate and jealousy and lies.
His logic all their madness magnified.
His kindness they did not have eyes to see.
They tried to kill the truth but truth won’t die.
In shock we saw him shot before our eyes.
(Though cowards do their work clandestinely.)
They clung to hate and jealousy and lies.
They tried to kill the truth but truth won’t die.
Nothing New
“Beneath the blazing sun there’s nothing new,”
Ecclesiastes told us long ago.
When Jesus told the masses what was true
It caused their wrath to boil and overflow.
And He, the innocent, was crucified.
This sparked His followers to bolder feats,
For when the grain falls to the ground and dies
It brings a harvest of abundant wheat.
And now we see it happening again.
A man is martyred for the words he spoke.
His voice now rings repeatedly in reels
And followers have multiplied by droves;
The truth cannot be hidden or concealed.
The murderer shall not have his desire,
For what he tried to stop now is a fire.
Gigi Ryan is a wife, mother, grandmother, and home educator. She lives in rural Tennessee.
Such a well written poem and such a strong message. We are so much better off for Charlie having lived among us.
Gigi, massive respect for your message that reverberates with those of us who seek and believe truth and understanding. These are two well-conceived and well-constructed poems.
These were both fantastic. I like the tie back to Ecclesiastes, but especially like the last couplet. The flames have been fanned.
Gigi, a pair of poems beautifully written and meaningfully paired. As Charlie Kirk had said more than once during the months prior to his death, the abandonment of Christian civilization created a vacuum filled by wokeness.
And let me take this opportunity to offer you a personal thank you for your fine haiku that was among the runners-up in the Society’s recent competition.
Gigi, you have made beautiful use of the villanelle and the sonnet to get a much-needed message on the Truth out there. I believe the Truth is spreading far and wide at this moment in time, and its wonderful poems like these that help it on its way. Thank you very much indeed!