A man who challenges himself, awake, asleep,
Who drives himself to overcome his fears,
Who masters every step and every leap,
Who wandered all alone for many years;

A man of great vitality and strength,
Who knows what labor is and does not shirk,
Who, for each piece of art, goes to great length
To master every aspect of the work;

And yet a student of the mystery
Of man's position in the universe,
Who sees beyond what man can hope to see
And sees essential loneliness, man's curse.

At home in wilderness, at ease with men, his art
Captures the sense of unease in the human heart.

Copyright (2006) by Arnold Cantor.
All rights reserved.

[Written July 25, 2006.]