What Stays Great Poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar

What stays great.
Is not announced from podiums.
Giving repeated statements made.
To praise it.
A greatness to keep it achieved,
Takes never to assume.
How that greatness is created.
And who the people were,
That collectively participated.

What stays great.
Is a continuous presence,
Of appreciation shown.
Known by all races.
Respectfully insisting,
This is a must to condone.

Sitting back eating snacks.
While laughing at others sweat.
Shed blood in tears and more than that.
To then call them names.
For the attention that this attracts.
Does not keep these misdeeds isolated.

What stays great,
Is encouragement given and received.
Among those with various skills and abilities.
Without their expertise,
Heard being belittled or demeaned.
By those sitting back with butts getting fat.
Yet awaiting benefits,
And dividends to them given.

What diminishes a greatness.
To witness it begin to slip downhill.
Is selfishness, greed and feeding upon ignorance.
Led by those worshipping conflict and division.
Imposing with a wish to choose,
Isolation.

Done to prove,
Repeatedly on a daily basis...
Their version of greatness,
Has more to do with independent stupidity.
And not with an interdependence.
That a unity sustains with maintained stability.
Can only a greatness to state it,
Remain to believe and not delude to deceive.
Anyone who knows how true greatness stays.
And not to imitate or charade it.
In lesser impressive to address it ways!