Notice of absence from Tristan Robert Lange
Life is full of seasons. This is a season of transition for me, where I will be moving with my family to a new location. As such, with much logistics to consider, I am doing my best to keep up. Please know if I accidentally don't respond, it is not because I am ghosting or becoming distant. Once things settle after the move, I am sure life will return to some normalcy. In the meantime, and always:
Read 👓, Write ✍️, Rise 🌅, Realize 🤯.
Tristan 🌹🖤🙏🕯️🐦⬛
Life is full of seasons. This is a season of transition for me, where I will be moving with my family to a new location. As such, with much logistics to consider, I am doing my best to keep up. Please know if I accidentally don't respond, it is not because I am ghosting or becoming distant. Once things settle after the move, I am sure life will return to some normalcy. In the meantime, and always:
Read 👓, Write ✍️, Rise 🌅, Realize 🤯.
Tristan 🌹🖤🙏🕯️🐦⬛
I came a while ago to learn
To watch, to teach, and to transform.
I came with truth, it would not turn—
This world that demands one conform
To be called a part of the norm.
I came forth a while ago to find
Anyone whom I could inform
And place renewed hope in their mind.
I stayed a little while to churn
Within each soul an inner storm
That, though it might feel a hot burn,
It would spark some holy reform;
Rather, it rose up a huge swarm
Of haters to arrest and bind,
To try, to judge, to then deform
The place that renews hope of mind.
I’ve been here a while—time to burn
Rhetorical rubber and form
A collective of folk who yearn
To open their hearts and to warm
Them, never to let them malform
To a “religious” place—confined—
Where idols and dogma are born
To renew false hope in their mind.
To my people, the Church, please learn
To open up now—don’t be blind—
For love's message will never burn
Renewable hope in your mind.
© 2026 Tristan Robert Lange. All rights reserved.
First published on tristanrobertlange.com, May 24, 2026.
Tittu
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Author:
Tristan Robert Lange (
Offline) - Published: June 1st, 2026 09:38
- Comment from author about the poem: Part of the Truth, Applied collection.
- Category: Religion
- Views: 23
- Users favorite of this poem: sorenbarrett, Paul Bell, Friendship, Mutley Ravishes, cellinic
- In collections: Truth, Applied.
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Comments11
Good write T.
Why thank you, Orchi! Much appreciated, mate! 🕯️🏮🙏🖤
Glug.
Damn it, P. We almost got away without you for a change! 🤣
Oh no! A glug sneaked in!
I have always loved the ABAB rhyme scheme it takes an ordinary poem and makes it more. The message of this poem is close to my heart telling others that conformity has its place but not in one's beliefs or values. A lovely write my friend and a fave
Thank you, Soren. Your observation about conformity gets right to the heart of what I was wrestling with. The poem is certainly aimed at the Church, but not because I think faith is the problem. Rather, I think faith is at its best when it remains open to renewal, reform, and the transformative power of love rather than settling into rigid certainty. Of course, that's really true of all institutions. Always grateful for your thoughtful engagement, my friend. 🕯️🏮🙏🖤
I would have to agree with you Tristan and you are most welcome my friend
How can something so simple like religion become so entangled in dogma that it completely loses all identity.
You can see why agnostics go through life happy.
Maybe being religious outside the church is the way to go.
Paul, you've touched on one of the central questions behind the poem. I don't think religion inevitably loses itself entirely, but I do think institutions of every kind can become entangled in structures, habits, and assumptions that drift away from their founding vision. Why? Because they're made up of us...humans. LOL! For me, the challenge is not abandoning faith or community, but continually returning to the heart of what gave them life in the first place. Always appreciate your thoughtful engagement, my friend. 🕯️🏮🙏🖤
Circling back, Paul, your line, "Maybe being religious outside the church is the way to go," got me thinking. Maybe. Jesus certainly spent a lot of time working outside the institution and challenging it when he felt it had lost its way. I don't think the answer is abandoning community so much as abandoning rigidity. The question, though, is whether that's actually possible for human beings. Can we organize without eventually becoming an institution? I am not sure. 🕯️🏮🙏🖤
Absolutely beautiful and well understood my friend. Thank you for these words. Stay blessed!! #BeTru2U
Amber, thank you so much, my friend. I'm grateful the poem resonated with you. Sometimes hope needs a little renewing too. Wishing you many blessings as well. 🕯️🏮🙏🖤
This is amazing.For me it speaks of the "truth" being given to people but rather than being grateful they being challenging and arguing.All that is wanting is hope but they often can't see it.Very topical when applied to the Iran/ Israel crisis.Made me think compadre
David, thank you, my friend. I can certainly see why the poem made you think of the current Israel-Iran crisis. The conflict continues to be shaped by competing narratives, fears, and deeply entrenched positions, making hope and understanding difficult to recognize even when people are searching for them. More broadly, though, this is wrestling with a timeless human tendency. We often ask for truth and renewal, but when they arrive in forms that challenge our assumptions, we can be remarkably quick to resist them. Always grateful for your thoughtful engagement, my friend. 🕯️🏮🙏🖤r
A powerful write. Your poem conveys a message about the importance of authenticity, love, and transformation in the face of societal and institutional conformity. The poet expresses a desire to inspire hope and reform, particularly within the Church, urging a departure from dogma and a movement towards a more open and loving approach to faith.
Friendship, thank you, my friend. I'm glad the themes of hope, transformation, and authenticity came through. Those were certainly at the heart of what I was trying to explore. I appreciate you taking the time to read so thoughtfully. 🕯️🏮🙏🖤
Did this one just flow out of you, Tristan?!
Haha! Yes, Mutley, it really did. The themes have occupied my thoughts for a long time, but when I finally sat down to write, the poem came together remarkably fast. Those are always a gift because they remind me that sometimes the hard work happens long before the pen ever touches the page. 🕯️🏮🙏🖤
💯
I keep God in my own way . You said it all here.
Amen indeed, Kevin. 😊 I think faith has a way of becoming most real when it moves beyond formulas and settles into the way we actually live. Glad you get that, my brother. 🕯️🏮🙏🖤
Very well written. We do indeed need to study to show ourselves approved. Just because someone stands behind a pulpit or on a bima or cries from a minaret does not mean they are telling you the truth. We need be not just cautious consumers but attentive students of our faith.
Thank you, Fränz. Your comment gets at something very important to me. Whether the voice comes from a pulpit, a bima, a minaret, or a political podium, I think we have a responsibility to remain attentive students rather than passive consumers. Faith, at its best, invites us into deeper engagement rather than unquestioning conformity. I appreciate your thoughtful reflection, my friend. 🕯️🏮🙏🖤
A deep and sincere write with sensible and well-based meanings and emotional background. A fave, my friend!
Thank you, my friend. I'm grateful that both the emotional and reflective sides of the poem resonated with you. Comments like this remind me why I share the work in the first place. 🕯️🏮🙏🖤
I really like the passion and honesty in your voice—it feels personal and sincere. With a bit more simplicity and flow, the message could connect even more deeply. good one
Vimal, thank you for reading so thoughtfully. Simplicity is often harder than complexity, isn't it? 😊 This one is a ballade, so the form itself asks certain things of the poem that can make it a bit more intricate than everyday speech. I'm grateful the passion and sincerity connected with you, my friend. 🕯️🏮🙏🖤
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