I fought them all of my days. For rights
for all. For freedom of conscience, for
freedom of choice, for freedom from fear.
But long years in the State House tend to
blur the factions in the eyes of the
people. And you can’t win every fight.
So when I won, I was “just doing
what I was supposed to do.” When I
compromised, I was “complicit with
evil.” And when I was beaten, I
was “pathetic.” By the end, my once-
loud voice had been diminished to a
whisper. Oh, they gave me an ornate
funeral with grand remembrances.
But during the eulogy, I know
my unwrinkled successors cut deals
and traded horses in the cloak room.
I hope they fare better than I did.