Autobiography

by Richard Hartwell

From booze to books and drugs to dragons,

The yin and yang of life explodes the myth

That we are what we plan to be.

No one plans to be an alcoholic.

No one plans to be a drug addict.

But the admixture of alcohol and opium

May open an unseen path to enlightenment.

The balance of what was and what is creates what will be.

You may turn aside on the path

Thinking you strike in a new direction,

You may halt in your tracks and refuse to advance further,

However, there is no turning back on your path.

The light and the dark of your self-reflection,

The good and bad of personal choices,

The calms and storms of life --

All these are merged into the days and nights of the journey

That becomes your autobiography.