Refinding My Moral Integrity Poem by Gregory Grinham

I stand inside the colours
of my own becoming,
where the reds of reckoning
meet the blues of calm return,
and the yellow of new truth
pushes gently through the dark.

The figure I paint is me,
but also the man I am learning to be—
steadier, clearer,
no longer turning away
from the compass I once ignored.

In my hands,
the circle glows again.
Four quiet words—
ethics, values, integrity, respect—
rise like coordinates
on a map I had forgotten how to read.

Around me,
the arcs of balance curve and hold,
reminding me that light and shadow
are not enemies
but partners in the work
of becoming whole.

And so I step forward,
one honest breath at a time,
re‑aligning the inner needle
toward the person
I choose to be today—
and again tomorrow.