Truth Needs No Permission To Endure Poem by James McLain

they try to bury it
in the muck of their lies
but the truth is a stubborn old dog
it won't stay down,
it won't play dead

you can slap it
kick it
even shove it into dark corners
but it's still there,
scratching at the door
waiting for daylight

they can write the rules
make their plans
but they can't stop the tick of time
or the words that crawl out
like rats from a flood,
like shadows from a forgotten room

truth doesn't need permission
it doesn't need your approval
it doesn't ask for forgiveness
it just keeps coming
it just keeps growing

and when you least expect it,
it breaks through
like an old man with a fistful of fire
too tired to care,
too old to pretend

truth endures,
like the earth beneath our feet
it doesn't need a reason
it just is.