The Every-Day Epic

The world is full of heroes

Some fight bloody wars,
some volunteer at soup kitchens
manage stores
and coach kids' soccer teams

Some wield spears
and battle dragons,
some wield measuring tape
and build apartments,
or stethoscopes in the fierce struggle
to heal human bodies

Some teach English in rural Africa
Haiti or Vietnam,
some teach senior citizens
how to use a CD-Rom

Yes, the every-day epic
is navigating anarchic city streets,
working two jobs to pay
for medicine and heat
and to donate to 'GreenPeace'
or 'habitat for humanity'

It's reading the classics,
soulful guitar licks,
the art of blush and lip-stick,
living with one thumb,
or giving a job to a bum

It's daring and compassion,
excellence and love ;
It's taking a beating
and then rising above