Poem: A Free Man

A Free Man

Touch me, I feel.
Hurt me, I cry.
Cut me, I bleed.
Reject me, I ache.
My heart breaks.

Move me, I weep.
Kiss me, I melt.
Embrace me, I warm.
Love me, I love.
We become one.

I want you to know my success, not my failure.
I want you to see my goodness, not my ugliness.
I want you to know my skill, not my limitation.
I want you to see my strength, not my weakness.
I want you to think I am perfect. I am not.

I am tough.
I am fragile.
I am strong.
I am breakable.
I am human.

Though I may portray otherwise,
I am but a man.
This is the real me.
In embracing it, I am free.
I am free.


-- Geoff Strickler
-- Dec 12, 2006