Ruled By The Heart

Could you cling harder to what pleases you?
Could you realise that stinging fantasy?
Could that muscle of joy throb forever?
Your heart demands it;
Your poor heart is so full of desire,
A yawning hunger remains within it.

Why is that brain of yours at odds with your heart?
Shouldn't you listen to your heart,
Obey its every bidding?
Isn't obedience to the heart the source of all pleasure?
Why does that irksome brain conspire to ruin your joy?
Who is that voice that speaks from within?
Why does it condemn you?
What harm have you done
Except look for lasting pleasure,
Even if it is at the cost of everything else?

You are on a mission;
You are in search of pleasure
That lives up to the flaming fantasy within.
Your heart is your queen,
Your impulses draw you to action.
All your energy is spent on
Chasing exciting shadows in your head.
What could be wrong with such a life?

Nothing is wrong with such a life
Except that the one who chases
His fantasies will never love reality.
He will not care about what is real,
As the real is not enticing enough.
He will not look beyond himself
For his dreams rule his soul.
Pain and ugliness will not appeal
To his heart which embraces
Only what it considers beautiful.

How sweet is that embrace?
How lasting is that pleasure?
How edifying is that delight?
There are some dreams that will never come true;
There are some fantasies that will never be acted out.
The pleasure in the head may never be translated into action,
And if it is ever realised, might not be as satisfying as the dream.
Yet the man goes on.

The Cross is the last thing on his mind,
Consecrating his members to the One on high
Is simply not a consideration.
Even He who is above all is irrelevant,
All that matters is what can be seen, felt and touched.
The only thing worth living for is the joy of the moment
And the moments to come.
So he blazes away like a candle
Dribbling its wax all over
Till it drowns in its own fluid.

-Samuel Godfrey George