(Jan Wk. 1-2)

"Your are old, I know, and must be wise,
But when you've lived so long, nothing's a surprise;
There's more to life, you too should realise,
Than sleeping the nights and studying from sunrise."

The old man said nothing, nor spared him a look,
He continued to read from his old frayed book;
A deep breath of exasperation, the pupil took,
And with a noisy shuffle returned to his nook.

The master spent the night in deep thought,
He understood what his brilliant disciple sought;
For when in adventure's pull, one is caught,
All efforts to resist are futile and come to naught.

Remembering his youth, he made up his mind,
And releasing his student, the old man did remind;
'You want to see the world, but not sure what to find,
Just remember that travel is also adventure of a kind.'

The scholar, in gratitude, quietly withdrew,
Stunned that his dream had finally come true;
Hurriedly packed, his things in a bag he threw,
And excitedly bid his master and friends adieu.

Few villagers watched him leave that day,
Though he walked out of the village, whistling away;
He would take on the world, come what may,
Yet, he should've heeded what his master would oft say. 

The master watched, standing stiff and tight,
Stood at the threshold, till his pupil was out of sight;
Worried for the boy, he prayed he would be alright,
For the scholar was naive, though quite erudite.

As the master did, so would the scholar understand;
That nothing in life goes the way you have planned.

And finally, it is done, after  a lot of trepidation, I have worked up the courage to write out this poem. This is for the PoetsPub contest for January Week 1-2.