Who I am

I still don't know who I am.

I wouldn't be able to paint myself as a painting

Nor sing myself as a tune

I would not know what steps would make my dance

And I don't think I'll know anytime soon

But that is not to say I know nothing

For there are a few brushstrokes I feel are right

Even if I don't know the shape they're making

There are some notes that I keep singing

Even if there's harmony I'm still faking

I may not always be going forward

But I am filled with a desire to leap

I don't know how I'll change in the future

But I know there are some parts I want to keep

Matchstick

People aren't all matchsticks

Waiting for the right friction

To make them burn bright

With a one-time flame

That everyone can see

Until the person is spent

A different set of molecules

And the fire in them

Is a wavelength beyond 

Though the heat is there

For any careful enough

Some people will not light

Despite repeated striking

Yet the chemical potential

Would still be responsive

Yet others need no stimuli

Which can be volatile

In fantastic ways

A few folk may only burn

To share their energy on

You, are more than a matchstick

The land of do what you're told

We were raised in the land of Do What You're Told

The land of Don't Speak Up and Don't Be Bold

The land of Follow This Order and Follow That Order Too

The land of Do As We Say But Not As We Do

And someway, somehow, in a way that struck at our core

We don't seem to live in that land anymore

But maybe, just maybe, we went a little too far

When deciding we don't want to be told who we are

We were told to follow orders, that following order was good

But we were never told to think as critically as we should

How to evaluate options, and what we should do

When more than one option is presented as true

We should've learned how to recognise manipulation

How it is not weakness to think with hesitation

That life is not always game with sides that win

That you will be wrong, that's the reality we're in

We were raised in the land of Do What You're Told

We started to Speak Up, and Be Bold

That was good, but now without meaning to

We've ended up in the land of Don't Tell Me What To Do

Though it follows a very different theme, the inspiration for the title phrasing comes from Cuhmbawamaba's song of the same name

The mountain

Look at the mountain we all must climb it
But the mountain is steep and in a harsh climate
So naturally, we are in awe of those at the summit
"Look at them, they've actually done it!"

So we promote them, dote on them,
Swallow every word they've ever spoken
And there could well be wisdom in what they're spouting
But maybes there's more to a person than their height on the mountain

...

Because some are pausing to put down rope
Helping those who are struggling to cope
Others have set up refreshment stations
Staying stationary providing aid with patience

So if you're carving paths for others to follow
Is it any wonder that you're going a little slow?
Or that those teaching wisely about the path ahead
May end up a little further back in their stead?

...

There is certainly an achievement in climbing to the sky
But remember we need more than clouds to live by
What if instead we could appreciate what we've found
In those that help us all take some steps from the ground