Jeanne d’Arc (Poem)

Painting by John Everett Millais from WikiArt

”I was chosen by God.”
This belief drove her throughout her journey
At age 16, she headed to the city
To proclaim to the King
That she was the one to bring victory to France

“I am not afraid. I was born to do this.”
This belief guided her throughout her battles
In a trial for her life
Malicious authority besieged her
Coercing to surrender, to concede

Her faith was almost broken
To stay alive, to keep breathing as Jeanne d’Arc in disguise
Then she heard the voice again
The voice always nudging her to the right direction
“Let it be. Yield to God”

Fate － Calmly and respectfully, she accepted

What was left in her ashes?
Pure, unbroken, diamond-like spirit
Inspiring myriads of souls, beyond time and space
Although she was martyred at age 19
Her spirit is still empowering us 600 years after her death

She was not born as a saint
She was not born as a hero either
She was born as a human like any one of us, carrying our own unique karma
Then, how was the legend born?
Remained relentlessly true to the voice within like no one could ever imagine

Be You

“One life is all we have and we live it as we believe in living it. But to sacrifice what you are and to live without belief, that is a fate more terrible than dying.“

「一度きりの人生、皆それぞれ自分が正しいと思う道を生きている。その信条を捨て、真の自分を偽って生きることは、死んでいるも同然だ」

Jeanne d’Arc, a heroine of France, a saint in the Roman Catholic Church
ジャンヌ・ダルク（フランスの国民的ヒロイン、カトリック教会における聖人）