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The Future We Made, Is The Present We Failed

the world is wrecked, we lastly admit,
has come to a freeze, run its full course
& unwittingly drained us of life-force

well with lies about outer shells
that are supposed to look sexy
’till everyone suffers, grave apoplexy

we’ve snared at each other’s foibles
when one brother tumbled– not cool
and preached from schools that are cruel

grown numb to pureness and empathy;
grown cold, mean, capricious, and blithe
— disregarding the other’s spirit

made holy the damn easy-button
clasped at gadgets and mind-changing balms
that bring instant ease, figments of calm

imbued the open-at-all-hours mindset
that proclaimed sleep as outmoded–
how in the world could sleep be outdated?

fit in in a world that gripped much,
stockpiled too much; witty raconteurs
that stand in stages of heights of grandeur

that old world’s broken, upended;
it has completely derailed us
but have faith, the upgrade will raise us

if we dare to change to a new angle
of a better truth– equity leads to equality:
one story of love for true camaraderie

what if in two hours the upgrade would start?
would you be ready to begin to mend?
then you’re primed for inner peace to descend
and we’d transcend to the future with intent

© 2022 selmamartin.com 


To arrive at a better future, we must transcend through the facade of 
pretense & view from a new angle with intent for inner peace to descend:
for our children’s future.

I wrote this poem in response to Sky Collection’s quote prompt 
no. 32,
on the Medium
platform where it was first published.
The quote prompt:

Enlightenment is a destructive process.
It has nothing to do with becoming better
or being happier. Enlightenment is the
crumbling away of untruth. It’s seeing through

the facade of pretense. It’s the complete
eradication of everything we imagined to
be true. ~ Adyashanti

~Adyashanti, Google Search

Image of a group of people hauling a huge fishing net in one collective effort.
Photo by Cassiano Psomas on Pexels.com Thanks.

And thank you for reading and engaging with me.
Hope you’re enjoying your summer, and I wish you miracles.

Selma Martin
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This Post Has 24 Comments

  1. Sadje

    Very interesting thoughts Selma.

      1. Sadje

        You’re most welcome

  2. Ingrid

    Here’s to the ascent of inner peace, and it’s diffusion into the world at large! 🙏

  3. Daphny Aqua

    This is thought provoking dear Selma, truly for the future generation we need to mend our ways for the future depends on the present we create for them. ❤️

  4. harmonykentonline

    Here’s to inner peace and the cessation of trying to force a viewpoint on others. Great poem and sentiment, Selma. Hugs 💕🙂

    1. Selma Martin

      Oh yes to inner peace. May we come to see through the facade of pretense. May we see to eradicate what doesn’t serve inner peace.
      Thanks for dropping a comment. So precious. I bless you, Harmony.

  5. Paul Cannon

    We thought we were so clever, and we gazumped ourselves with our own desires, including enlightenment, all for a price too. Inner peace, compassion, humility, a better path. Loved the form and structure of this too.

    1. Selma Martin

      Not as clever as we thought. Right!

      May the chaos of recent year be the impetus for enlightenment and May we morph into our goodness. We must!

      En-light >> En-right >> En-rich >> En-ergy: work— an inside job

      Thanks so much for reading and responding. I appreciate it. Blessings, PV.

  6. memadtwo

    Change or be changed…better to start the process ourselves. (K)

    1. Selma Martin

      It’s an inside job.
      Thanks for reading and commenting, K. Bless you. XoXo

  7. rabirius

    Excellent words.
    And I like the picture very much as well.

  8. Ruth

    I’m ready.

  9. Cindy Georgakas

    wonderful questions to untold answers wading through as we navigate 💖💖💖

  10. Cheryl, Gulf Coast Poet

    Selma, I believe that inner peace is a prerequisite for world peace. Both are in short supply in our current chaos. Thank you for a relatable poem about inner peace. <3

  11. Anonymous

    Wonderful poem, Selma. Very thought-provoking, too. Inner peace is so important and so necessary. We have to try and fix our world (somehow) as, although we are the present, we are making the future for our children and children’s children. A scary thought. Xxx 💖

    1. Anonymous

      Hi Selma. That last comment, which for some absurd reason, says it’s from Anonymous, is from me, Ellie (Thompson). I’ve no idea why that has happened and it’s never happened before. If this comment goes the same way, I will get on to the Happiness Engineers to see if they can rectify this issue. My comments have also been disappearing on other blogs, too. Not sure what is going on! Xxx

  12. Monico Nunez

    Love it! It speaks of our current worldly encounters. Blessings to you!

  13. Tanmay Philip

    I love your poetry, Selma. This one in particular really struck me. The launch of Gaia 2.0 is eagerly awaited.

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