Let go of learning,
and you’ll be free of worry.

“Yes” and “yeah” may sound alike,
but the space between them can be vast.
What others fear, I too must fear —
yet endless questions only stir the mind.

Most people seem joyful,
as if feasting at a banquet,
or climbing a tower in spring.

But I alone am still and quiet,
like a newborn that has not yet smiled.
I drift, as if I have no home.

Everyone else has more than enough.
I alone seem to have nothing.
My mind is dull — lost in confusion.

Others are bright and clever.
I alone appear dark and slow.
They are sure of themselves.
I move like the sea —
restless, without direction.

Everyone has a purpose.
I am like an outsider,
strange and simple.

But I am nourished by the Tao —
the great mother of all.