The Genie

There once was genie who lived in my room,

He sat near my bed, and sung in hush tune,

One night he said, “Boy, I will give you three wishes,

But before you say yes, I will have to remind you,

That wishes are precious, and some may come true,

just not in the way you intend for them to.”

So I sat up all night and wondered in silence,

Whether I could take on his benevolent challenge.

I could wish for gold and to end world famine,

and maybe a fish tank of smart, colorful salmon.

Whatever the case, I need to remember,

I have only three wishes, so I better not waste them.

Later that evening I called for the Genie,

He came in a whirlwind right out of the tv

I took a deep breathe, and was preparing to speak,

But the genie interrupted with a gift at my feet.

It looked like an urn, or maybe a vessel,

But he said to speak into it,

To reduce the noise level.

I began to speak, in a nice quiet whisper,

I would like to be rich by the end of the summer

All of a sudden, I felt an embrace,

I was dragged to Hell, or to some similar place

Soon thereafter, I awoke from a throne,

Of rubies, and sapphires and emerald stone

The Genie was kind, he made me a King,

Of a prosperous nation that owned everything.

Later that evening as the village died down,

I sat in my bedroom and admired my crown,

But soon noticed embers glowing yellow and brown,

It came from the window observing the town

There were hundreds of people running about,

The city burn bright as protesters shout,

“Why must we suffer for you to be King?

You broke all your promises and peace offerings

Surrender your head, you liar and cheat,

You deserve to die at the guillotine’s feet.”

I looked around in panic and fright,

and yelled aloud, “I can not die tonight!”

This was a lot for a King, it was much too stressful,

Perhaps, I needed the Genie, or an urn or vessel.

And in that moment, I saw the Genie appear,

with an urn or vessel, it still wasn’t clear,

I yelled to the Genie, while quaking in fear

“I don’t want to be king take me away from here!”

“Don’t be a fool, young boy,

that wish counts as two!

Of course once it is spoken,

your dreams will come true.”

Now, I don’t own a kingdom, or even a Genie,

But before he left, he said something that stuck to me,

“Of all the lies that you have been told, did you really believe,

that one could truly achieve, all of that capital ethically?”