I’m not totally useless,
I could be used as a bad example.
Someone you recall,
When you’re trying to figure out
What NOT to do.
Unaffected by the glares and shaking heads,
Stiffened by disapproval
As my chin continues to rise.
I am the etcetera that is never mentioned,
But still talked about.
I am the phantom pain in lingering limbs,
And in tamed tumors.
I provide no purpose,
But possess the most meaning
Amongst mediocre men.
I am not a man of my word,
The power escaped me long ago.
I am a man of my word,
The pain within me from long ago.
A bad example.
Useful in the process of failure,
Useful in the process of success.
A template I must choose.
