The Forged Man

A human being is the only creature that can be less or more than its base nature.

A man can resign himself to his whims. He may become nothing more than an ape with mindless urges. Though he revels in his antics and fornication he is never satisfied. His soul yawns in weariness and cynicism. In the pain and sorrow of his vanity he may be inclined to drown himself with alcohol or asphyxiate himself with the smoke of cigarettes. He finds worse things and desperately tries them. He may find religion but it is just another drug. Such a man swirls and staggers in his own emptiness. He is a ghost before his time.

A man may set a course and stay that course unto fruition. He may prosper but if his every achievement is worldly then his gains are doomed to perish. Ultimately, the pride of his life shall prove dust and ashes. It shall be as if he never were.

A man may gaze within himself but only if he truly means to. Should he not flinch he shall judge himself for his very gaze is a scrutiny of all that he is. He shall be ashamed of his shame for pride cannot endure honesty. The man so bold as to peer within shall find strength in his sincerity and comfort in his courage. He who dares the horrors within rises against them for he proves dauntless already. The darkness within is burned away by the light of his honesty. The cold within is burned away by the fiery warmth of his compassion. Such a man is made new. He shall henceforth be beyond his nature for he is now a man of spirit. Forged in the flames of Freedom and Justice he is incorruptible and indomitable. Such a man is innocent and justified. He shall know peace even as the world burns around him.