No, I don’t consider myself to be leader (see my about blurb to the right) this was written for friends and loved ones.
*
Build you up to tear you down
Spitting on their heroes
Tearing you part
Then holding their hands out
What the hell do they
Think that they doing anyway?
*
They say toughen up and deal
If you want to be a leader
Then harden up your heart
And don’t take it oh so hard
Do they not understand?
Can they not comprehend?
It is that very soft spot
That giant loving heart
That makes you willing and able
To be a Pagan leader
*
They say it’s all trade off
Part and parcel for the fame
As if you were Madonna
Riding around in a private plane
*
Why do they do it?
What could be their reasons?
Do they think that they are
Doing the community a service?
Are they stroking their own egos?
Riding on your coat tails?
Or do they just want to see you suffer?
*
Making two whole dollars
For each and every book sale
Speaking at the festival
And getting paid with peanuts
Isn’t all that easy
When you have mouths to feed
*
Buying up a property
Organizing a gathering
Taking out a second mortgage
Promoting and volunteering
Working when you could be
Spending time with the kids
*
And then the people show up
And they have so much fun
Then toss a bag of chips
Out the window on their way out
Leaving you to clean the litter
*
They say you can take it
Even if you hate it
Take the heat and love it
Or get your Pagan ass
Out of the kitchen
*
I can’t help but wonder
How long they could do it?
Would they last a week running fest?
Or teaching a class?
Could they handle all the slander?
From those they are serving?
I know that I am dying
To see them dying inside
And know how it feels
To be hand that’s feeding
Only to be bitten
*
They pick and they snipe
Argue and criticize
Gossip and spread rumours
Then expect you to give them
Everything for nothing
*
They only want what they want
Never mind what they need
Tow the party line
And you must tell them only
What they want to hear
Remember to always cater
To the lowest common denominator
*
Don’t expect them to think
Don’t ask them to examine
Their very own beliefs
Just spout New Age bullshit
That’s all they want anyways
*
And then some day they wonder
Where did all our leaders
Disappear to?
Where have they gone?
What caused the burnout?
Why did they leave us
Hanging in the wind?
*
So why even bother?
What’s the point of doing it?
Why spend back breaking hours?
And waste hard earned money?
And take time off from work?
*
They obviously
Do not deserve it
Respect it or want it
Anyways!
*
Do it for the father
Who hands his teenager
A book on Pagan ethics
*
Do it for the girl who
Is learning about the Goddess
And how to love the body in the mirror
*
Do it for the baby
Sitting in the Circle
Nawing on an acorn
*
Do it for the gods
Who want only to be
A part of our lives
*
Do it for a culture
Steeped in hate and ignorance
Arrogant and proud
Do it
To turn it into something
Worth living in
*
Do it for the planet
Our most sacred Mother
The rocks and the trees
The animals and bees
*
Do it to spite
Those narrow-minded idiots
Who never think to say
Thank you
Or please
*
So be a Pagan leader
Work your fingers to the bone
Expose your bleeding heart
Protect and serve
Give everything you’ve got
Give them all that you are
*
And when they bitch and moan
Just smile and tell them
Congratulations!
You just volunteered!
Related posts:
- Yet Another Rant Poem: Be a Pagan Leader
- Pagan Values: A Pagan Community Statment on Sexual Ethics
- Requested RePost: How to Not Fit In
Thank-you, I needed this.
There is too much truth in this poem. I’m not sure I’d call myself a leader, but I am a busy body. But some of my best reasons to be active in the community is to give back to those who helped me, and that I get to meet and work with the greatest people that way.