Surely, I Do Not Hope In Vain That Swains Of My Work Will Fain Publish And Pay Me Poem by Gayathri Seetharam

Surely, I do not hope in vain that swains of my work will fain publish and pay me
-Gayathri B. Seetharam
Another Canada Day and it is time for soul searching
If reaching out for the stars and fleetingly touching them
Should be the dream of every Canadian
It is also to be the cream of society, Psyche's people;

If mankind and womankind comprise of Psyche's world
I say that as a Canadian, a Torontonian,
The court of law, the Canadian Bill of Rights decrees
That I am entitled to fame and fortune in Toronto and hence, Canada;

If the defence, I, say that my work in science and engineering and art(s)and literature is unique
The prosecution says that I have been published on the internet
The gentlemen of the Jury, all possible buyers and hence, sellers of my intelligence, wit and talents,
Make empty promises which, Your Honour, I forsooth and forswear,
Then these promises that mean so much and I set store by
Are like fragile porcelain curios
That can be broken if dropped
And my trusting heart suffers a blow
Because so much of anticipation and longing
Turns into an ashen taste in my mouth;

But hear ye, hear ye, I speak of my own despair
When thee, gentle reader, would like me to speak of Canada's progress
My fellow patriots, hence I say, let there be merriment on this day
And let us listen to PM Justin Trudeau speak of his beloved country
And let us be bewitched by him;

I have a prayer for our souls and hearts
That we never experience the sorrow that
Our City of Toronto hath borne in recent times
And the same city wept for those afflicted by the tragic happenings
And prayed that there be an impenetrable fortress against such attacks;

Let us grow love and unity in the gardens of our minds
And let the flowers of beautiful souls, past and present, touch our minds and hearts
Let us be Canadian in spirit and human in longing
And be blessed in love and in living this wonderful life
Let this be true and not a fantasy
And let it be said of me as William Shakespeare hath said in his play, A Midsummer Night's Dream,
"The poet's eye, in a fine frenzy rolling,
Doth glance from heaven to earth, from earth to heaven
And as imagination bodies forth
The form of things unknown, the poet's pen
Turns them to shapes, and gives to airy nothing
A local habitation and a name."

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Acknowledgements:
1. Oxford English Dictionary
2. The internet