Poem For Today: The Quiet Knight

"The Quiet Knight" by Mohja Kahf

The quiet knight forgets to swagger for the ladies
but the woman he loves becomes a queen
in the throne room of his chest and arms
and he never leaves
all the laundry or birth control to her

The quiet knight is the friend
of her body in bed and knows its secrets
and out of bed, he is her friend
and keeps her secrets

The quiet knight has no bellow or bravado
He has seen the innocents thrown in the mud
under the hooves of the galloping gallants
He has given them a ride to the shelter

The quiet knight does not insist on leading battle
But it is the quiet knight who holds the ground
and sticks around, when the flashbulbs have dimmed,
to help the wounded home,

after bringing to them, in his cupped hands,
a drink of his courage and nobility