Teacher, I Ask You

Throw me into the deep end
And let me struggle there
Alone, I will use
My pre-acquired knowledge
To escape
And to learn from the experience

Take me to a tropical land
And leave me to relax there
Learning the happiness
Of peaceful tranquillity
So that I see
The pure beauty of living

Or better still, keep me
From entering that place
Give me purpose
Showing me the cruelties of desire
And when
To try or to give up

I beg you, give me everything
So I no longer keep track
My happiness forgotten
Proof that possessing everything
Is equal
To possessing nothing

Then force me to choose
Between each of these scenarios
For growth's sake
Between better, worse, easier, harder
To see
What I am truly made of