"Heron-marked Sword" Inspired by The Eye of the World:

Heron-marked Sword

My father gave me a heron-marked sword;

it never leaves my side.

With it close,

I pretend he is too.

The sword represents my tie to him,

his love for me,

my identity as his son.

Others see my heron-marked sword

and don’t know what to think.

I’m too young, they say;

it’s impossible, they say.

I do not match their expectations

for a carrier of such a blade,

so they accuse me of theft.

To avoid their stares and judgment,

I cover the heron marks.

I don’t need their expectations—

I only want to live up to my father’s,

to be a son he can be proud of,

to be a son who represents him well,

to be a son who comes home to see him again.