Sober, Grave, And Staid Poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar

Sober, grave, and staid...
To highlight one's prim and proper,
Self restraint.
Often impairs one's vigor and effectiveness,
To react spontaneously...
That allows the naturalness of the order of things,
To flourish to become what they are intended.
And unfortunately reflects,
A stagnation of beliefs with those standards valued...
Unable to compete with an existing reality.

'We will continue to seek leadership,
Which represents 'our' interests.'

~And those interests are? ~

'Whatever has worked for our ancestors.'

~Even though times have drastically changed? ~

'We are not going to allow times to change.
We prefer to keep our beliefs outdated.
And we are entitled to do just that.'

~But what is the advantage? ~

'We do not concern ourselves with benefits,
Or advantages.
Logic or common sense.'