Tainted Heroes

Tainted Heroes
Where have all the heroes gone?
Like those within our youth
The ones we admired,
From which we sought the truth,
Righteous deeds,
Compassion,
We praised in ink and song
Erected on the pedestal—
Gods that walked alone
Were they all illusions?
Just some fantasy
Or does youth wane to wisdom—
Thus reality
Tarnish stains the purity,
Deceit destroys the soul
One by one they’ve fallen—
Bloody pieces on the floor
Immortality reverts to sin,
Veracity yields to lies,
Heroes of our making—
Human traits survive
Are they just reflections of what we want to be?
We bear their cross of failure—
Mass liability
Men are men
Who sweat and toil with human frailty,
They live and die with dignity—
Not immortality
From innocence to worldliness,
The measure we have gained,
Today there are no heroes—
We are what remain