Our Presents Lay Poem by Kurt Philip Behm

What determines genius…
an endowment or a choice

Is there destiny in all of us,
waiting for a voice

Is to reject your epiphany,
most used as an excuse

By those who pull the shades down low,
the darkness theirs to choose

Was Van Gogh so enlightened,
when he cut off his left ear

Or Joplin ever doubtful,
when she sang beyond her fear

Is genius so misunderstood,
its meaning false portrayed

That we see gifts in others
—as we let our presents lay

(Villanova Pennsylvania: March,2017)