Their Pretty Eyes - Nelson Mandela Eulogy

Their Pretty Eyes May Roll

Nelson Mandela, president, is he dead then
Ended all our care, that great leader, his warm smile,
Still after twenty-seven years of prison when
Others called for revenge, evinced a genuine style.
Many admired him even after reviling him:
Afraid to be on the wrong side of history,
They trimmed their sails, but none are now out-smiling him
On Earth or elsewhere in this final mystery:
Not what a man is worth, what makes a human being,
Or why someone is great, and someone else a peon,
Nor why some go to prison while others go skiing,
Not why one is great, and another is a peon,
But genuinely how does one prove in death, life, birth,
Through action subtle as a smile, what life is worth?

KLK
12/6/13