The Phoenix Legend

Ev'ry five hundred years or so
There is a gathering.
Birds from ev'rywhere congregate
To discuss their new king.

I was invited to attend
To see who runs the world.
By watching and listening,
Secrets would be unfurled.

The three phoenixes dictate all,
They choose who shall be king.
Through a battle bloody as war
One says what the birds sing.

One phoenix is of flames and power,
He longs for the cries of war.
He will lead the world to ashes,
Only to rise once more.

The second bird is of lightning,
And craves to understand.
He'll lead the world to discov'ry
With skills of mind and hand.

The third phoenix is of beauty
She longs to heal the world.
She will lead all mankind to peace
With grace and healing swirled.

Each phoenix would fight the other,
Flames, lightning and sunlight.
Their blood would pour onto the ground
As each displayed their might.

The winner would choose the world's fate,
Or so the birds told me.
Every five hundred years they fought,
Only one saw vict'ry.

They could not live at the same time,
Earth couldn't handle it.
And so they fought for survival
Killing each, bit by bit.

But there was a surprise this year,
The birds sang together.
The birds of beauty and lightning
Seemed to like each other.

The birds' human incarnations
Had become as family.
They didn't want to fight or rule
They just wanted to be.

But the Phoenix of Fire was true
And kept to his nature.
He grew up in the midst of war
His pain his sole feature.

He vowed to destroy all makind
When he was crowned king.
He would obliterate all humans
And then peace, he could bring.

Lightining would not stand for this war
And knew he had to fight.
His sister phoenix was too gentle,
And would not survive the plight.

Lightning challenged Fire to a duel
To buy his sister time.
She would flee while the two battled
And one heard their death chime.

But Beauty was no chicken bird
And stayed by her brother.
He protested loudly at her.
She paid him no bother.

Fire attacked with all his power.
Lightning shield Beauty.
H would die before she saw harm
He knew 'twas his duty.

While war can lead to discov'ries
And new queries of though,
It was done so on the shoulders
Of the ones who had fought.

Peace would lead to less advancement,
But progress would be pure.
No blood would taint science's hands.
Peace, Lightning would assure.

It seemed the fight would never cease,
Neither could land a blow.
Lightning kept his cool, but Fire raged,
Vowing the blood would flow.

Then he made good upon his vow
And struck a viscous blow.
Lightning then fell upon the ground,
Fire had bested his foe.

The Phoenix of Fire dove downward,
Sure of his victory,
He would kill Lightning and Beauty
And rewrite history.

But for the love of her brother,
Beauty would not stand by.
She dove between Fire and Lightning,
All sure that she would die.

But she deflected fire's power
Through her own silent strength
And drove him back with sunlight pure,
That threw him back at length.

Beauty used her powers of peace,
To look into Fire's heart
And dismayed at all of his pain
And understood her part.

She looked at Lightning with a smile,
"Don't worry about me,"
She said to her precious brother.
"This is so we can all be free."

She dove headfirst into his heart
And drove his pain away.
She used her healing powers to
Make his heart bright as day.

In doing so she lost her life,
For it took all her might.
But the pay off had been worth while
For Fire had seen the light.

He'd found a force so pure and good
That it healed his old scars.
He'd never felt so free before
No more trapped behind bars.

But with this revelation came
A new feeling of pain.
He could feel a great well of guilt
'Twas driving him insane.

He looked to Lightning and begged him,
"Please take away this pain,"
And raised his neck up to Lightning
In hopes 'twould be his bane.

But Lightning could not bring himself
To end his sister's work.
She gave her life to end the reign
Of this self-serving jerk.

He glared at Fire with teary eyes
And asked why he should care.
The only one he loved was dead
'Twas Fire's burden to bear.

Fire begged with him to be put down,
And end this pain of guilt.
For of all the pains he'd endured,
This was the greatest built.

Lightning refused to take his life
Saying he deserved it.
Why should Fire get the peace of death?
Why should Lightning submit?

Then Fire got mad, for the last time
And built up his fire storm.
Then he threw himself at Lightning
In perfect fighting form.

But instead he did as Beauty,
And gave Lightning himself.
Lightning, Fire and Beauty fused
Making a higher self.

Then the birds from around the world
Began singing their songs
And gave praise to the Higher Form,
Saying goodbye to wrongs.

I marveled at this Higher Form,
Eager to hear it speak,
Wanting it to share great wisdom
With my kind that was weak.

The Higher Form stood in silence
While the birds sang its praise.
And then it turned and looked at me
And it said with voice raised;

"You humans could become like me
If only you would learn.
I am the balance of all life,
Beyond what you discern."

"This shall be the fate of your kind;
Following in my stead.
I will guide you to balanced lives,
And put behind your dread."

"To you I will pass some great truths
And you will take them out.
Some people will listen to them,
Others will have their doubt."

"You must only concern yourself
With those who will listen.
For those who don't, it is their choice.
And they shall not wisen."

And so the form told me its truths;
It talked of life balance,
Bringing peace to the world at large,
And how man can advance.

But let me ask my fellow man,
Whom I know, oh so well,
Would you take the advice I bring,
And on its wisdom dwell?

Or would you tear these words apart,
And destroy their meaning?
Causing more arguments and pain,
Purposely misleading.

These words shall only be shared with
Those who hear the calling;
Those who seek to be changed by them,
Who know that they're falling.

I will not give these words to those
Who would change their meaning,
Those who seek justification
Of their acts, demeaning.

The words are meant to be as is
And not torn into parts.
You cannot pick and choose the words,
All shall be ta'en to heart.

Listen for them in the birds' songs.