"... seeking the bubble reputation, even in the cannon's mouth." Wm Shakespeare
BUBBLE REPUTATION
A hero's act that takes his life implies
a selflessness that by this gallant deed
he's willing, almost anxious to concede
his own life and so happily he dies.
How clear is thought when conscience tells one lies
in situations dazzling in their speed,
with friends dependent on perception's need
to take an action common sense denies?
So what is left to say when he is dead?
His will-to-live was for that moment shed?
The sadder ones perhaps are men who chose
to balk at rash acts - and of course there's those
who'd say they'd welcome dying's fleeting fame,
but I suspect they'd sooner live with shame.