Ode to Ulysses

Care not what they do nor heed what they say
Defy with all your strength the puppet strings
Let them never force you to kneel or sway

With each step along the path this new day
resist always the mockingbird who sings
Care not what they do nor heed what they say

Ignore the debtor for each debt you pay
but listen closely as your own truth rings
Let them never force you to kneel or sway

Look away from the noosed rope’s fray
the lone hanged man as he so brusquely swings
Care not what they do nor heed what they say

Forgo the idols as relics now prey
No one knows what the hereafter brings
Let them never force you to kneel or sway

Choose then to forge a solitary way
Savor the calm solace of your own wings
Care not what they do nor heed what they say
Let them never force you to kneel or sway