Essence

Reflect upon the nature of reality,
In this transient and cryptic dance.
Is the visage in the mirror but a semblance,
Or the true essence of my being?

What is reality, I inquire—
Is it the butterfly’s delicate flight?
Or perhaps the butterfly beholding me,
Finding joy in my sight?

Daily, we labour and strive,
Chasing echoes of fleeting contentment.
Is this the substance of our existence,
Or a mirage in the abyss?

We walk the path of routine,
Earning coin for happiness professed.
But is this pursuit our true reality,
Or a shadow, by desires inflamed?

Reality—an elusive whisper,
A question veiled in enigma.
Is it found in our perceptions,
Or in the boundless realm of the cosmos?

---

Dance Off

Reality stood tall and clear,
A figure of substance, ever near.
Before him, Delusion wove her tale,
A fragile, shifting, silken veil.

“Why do you twist and turn the light?”
Reality asked, in the still of night.
“Why cloak the world in shadows deep,
And fill the minds with dreams that creep?”

Delusion smiled, a beguiling grin,
“Without me, where would they begin?
I offer comfort, a gentle lie,
A refuge when the truth runs dry.”

Reality sighed, with eyes so stern,
“Yet in my arms, true lessons they learn.
For every pain, a wisdom grows,
Through hardship’s fire, their spirit knows.”

“But look,” said Delusion, “how they thrive,
In the stories where they believe they’re alive.
A world where sorrow finds no place,
Where every failure hides its face.”

Reality knelt, with steady hand,
And touched the earth, the sea, the land.
“Yet here they find their truest part,
The beating pulse, the human heart.”

Delusion wavered, a fleeting mist,
“Still, I persist, for they insist.
In dreams, they seek what they can’t bear,
A world unscarred, untouched by care.”

Reality rose, unwavering, true,
“I am the ground beneath the dew.
Though bitter at times, and hard to see,
Only through me can they truly be free.”

So they stood, both firm and frail,
Reality solid, Delusion pale.
A dance eternal, a poignant fight,
Between the dark and piercing light.