Moral Development

A dozen of us are gathered around,

more than a few with leaden chins resting

on the knobbed ridges of our closed fist mounds,

blinking faster till eyelids start sticking,

wishing we could have hit snooze just once more.

Our professor reminds us she’s awake

by four each morning, as if our stupor

could be dispelled by an inspiring shake.

No comments from the class, she lectures on:

How forsaking one's own life should give pause,

imagine losing self preservation

for what might be a more important cause,

moral high ground to avoid, far too sad –

no dispute from the sleepy undergrads.

***

Well, I can’t say that I agreed with her,

not way back then, though I kept my thoughts in,

and not now, more than a decade later,

but see where a shade of nuance begins:

the pitfalls of toiling without restraint.

Even for a noble cause consider

the more sacred things it’s pursuit might taint,

good intentions can lead to disaster.

With students of my own I’ve fallen prey

to those tempting tendencies of giving

beyond what’s generous, in a blind way

that’s both unbalanced and unbefitting.

And yet, bit romantic, but can’t ignore

that there are some causes worth dying for.