I prayed for madness and the madness came
And now I pray for madness to depart
Having indulged in cognizant superstition
In periods of stress the flights of birds
The magic of numbers twelve plus five

And I have chastised myself and worse for insults
To the body to the brain
Knowing full well that brain is body
But I was a materialist a crass instrumentalist
Knowing full well that birds fly for their own purposes

The division of I and myself was a primal error
Perhaps unavoidable and therefore not reprehensible
Perhaps universal or at least typical I don’t know
But I arrogated unto I the voice of command
The voice of control punishment and criminal proceeding

Long have I known that the tyrant must be quelled
But revolutions are bad
I can’t amputate a part of myself
And thus I propose to enter into negotiation
To render the theatre of battle as a play

Whereas wisdom learns from the past and plans for the future
Let us not waste our time debating the status of time
Whether it is an illusion whether or not it exists
Certainly let us not adopt the unreasonable attitudes
Of debilitating regret or paralyzing anxiety

Whereas each person must make decisions
And make them in the absence of omniscience
Let us apprise ourselves to the greatest extent possible
Of the facts relevant to the case
Remembering always that the world is infinitely interesting

Whereas in our limited knowledge and our weak perceptions
We make each decision in a moment of time
Let us prepare ourselves in each instance
To give an account to state reasons
And let us assess that account with patience and compassion

Whereas our knowledge and perceptions are ineluctably distorted
By desires long-standing harmful habits and unreliable memory
Let us not regard the errors that follow like ducklings their mother
With punitive intent for how is it just
To repay suffering with more suffering

Whereas many of life’s proceedings occur automatically
Let us cultivate those habits and routines that conduce
To reasonable and productive actions
Remembering always those principles that make things go best
Never confusing spontaneity with thoughtless impulse

Whereas each person is unique and valuable
And therefore worthy of respect
A worthiness expressed in the word and concept of dignity
Let us commit to acting according to this reasonable principle
Not forgetting that I am a person myself

Whereas everything we do takes place in a social context
Let us seek to engage with and not to isolate ourselves from
The wisdom of saints and sages of friends and loved ones
For our actions affect others who should have some say
And empathy is more-than instrumentally significant

Whereas dialogue epitomizes not only theatre
But also social interactions and the chorus of voices
That make up personality
Let us resolve to play our part and many indispensable parts
Regarding truly each part as a locus of manifold complexity

Therefore let us assert the nullity obsolescence
And unavailability of the role known variously
As Tyrant Controller Portable-Dictator Emperor
Super-ego Mini-Sovereign Overlord Judge-and-Jury
Final-Authority Absolute-Monarch Head-Cheese and Boss
Substituting instead Coach Consultant Producer-Director
Pathfinder or Master of the Revels

Performing a role differs from performing other tasks
And requires something more than following instructions
Macbeth falls dead for obeying too much
And while I have ceded too much to the issuer of commands
The play goes on even as I exit the stage