malalai khan

Like the others—I have been lost—
In the perilous sea—of mist.

Like others—I have given up—
Falling down the slump—

But I have risen—in the darkest hour
And held on to Hope—the power—
That stayed with me—despite—
I had fallen—from a height.

'Tis a constant climb and stride—
To find the Truth—with the light
Of a lantern—that shines—
In their faces—full of lies.

Somewhere, near the top, I find—
A peace—a Truth—to which others were blind.

While others looked for the fountain—of Youth,
I searched for the mountain—of Truth.

I was inspired to write this poem from the classic painting, Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog by Caspar David Friedrich. The poem is an allegory, as it symbolizes the philosophers: Friedrich Nietzsche—with the mountain climb in Thus Spoke Zarathustra—and Diogenes—with holding the lantern to find ‘truth.’