half a man

"but wait!"
heads turn to look.
"it turns out
he's just a scared bully
he's good on the inside!"

the gathered UN assembly stares.
the woman who spoke
in her authoritative suit.
the passionate look on her face.

they stare at her subject.
a world leader 
who doesn't see them 
as equals in influence
thus they
and their countries
are not equals 
in humanity.

this top decider 
who fails to believe he
like all of us
can do no more
than try to be his best
in each moment.
sees his inner compass
as weakness
as vulnerability.

"he doesn't know"
thinks the page
standing in an alcove
"that he's only half a man
that he can only 
be half a man
half a woman.
all of us 
are only half
of what we can be.

the page thinks of conversations
with his father.
his father was there for him.
supported and encouraged.
put family first.

his father always felt
he had more to give the world.
art, thought, discovery, something.
paths not taken
unfulfilled dreams, potential.

he thinks of his grandfather
who searched for true love
a second time.
Who ran out of love
for his own children.

he thinks of his uncle
teaching, happily married.
two great kids
a shaped life
a tempered life of quality.

he looks down at his own hands.
he is a page at the UN
friends with wonderful passionate people.
in an amazing city
wide open for absent true love.

he thinks of his brother
his best friend
aspiring, searching as well.
they talk often
trying to find meaning & purpose.

the page reflects
what it means to be a man
the give and take.
how his father taught him
the pursuit of one thing 
leaves behind another

the best you can do
is to juggle.
when it's all said and done
you're only half a man.
the other half
is in your imagination
aspirations, doubts, regrets, dreams.

the page watches
this leader who thinks
he can do it all.
He who thinks 
he can be a full man.
Who is just half blind.

most of the delegates here
have the same delusion
but even they know 
this bastard is different.

the page looks 
at the woman who spoke.
knows she is right
In a way.

another scared bully with good intentions. 
he too, sees her smirk.
this horrible joke 
has been played on us all
through the ages of humanity.

the delegates recover
from their initial shock.
"what's the point?"
they wonder
"if this idiot is good inside
I'll waste my life 
searching to see."

"there's only so much time.
I give it to those 
who give back.
can anyone 
this sure of themselves 
have any faith left for humanity?"

by Evan Carroll, 4/24/2026