A Poem for National Poetry Month: Riders in the Dawn

Yeah, I know, I missed yesterday. I was working on an essay on Wittek's ghazi theory, and time got away from me, so you get a poem, today. This one started with the dawn, and turned itself into social commentary.

Riders in the Dawn

In the morning light, I see them,

the riders on the ridge,

silhouettes of destiny,

narrow eyed, tight-lipped,

and I wonder why we need them

to be heroes in our place,

to do the things we cannot do,

or do not want to face,

and I wonder why the rest of us,

each and every one,

cannot do what’s good and right,

take the hard yards that must be run,

and as they disappear from view,

the brave, the lonely and the very few,

I wonder why the rest of us

are just content to wait.