Once there was a light, bright and bold,
Shining fiercely, a sight to behold.
It pierced the darkness, it chased the night,
But it longed for more, a deeper light.

One day, it met a lantern dim,
Its flame flickering, weak and thin.
The light asked, "Why do you burn so low?
Why not shine like me and glow?"

The lantern spoke, its voice so small,
"I burn in silence, with no great call.
I do not seek to pierce the skies,
I only glow where darkness lies."

The light then laughed, its radiance grand,
"Do you not wish to take a stand?
To blaze like me, to break the dark,
To leave a trail, to leave a mark?"

The lantern flickered, but then replied,
"I do not seek the world outside.
For in my glow, though soft and slight,
I bring a peace, I bring a light."

The light, confused, then asked again,
"Why not rise, why not begin?
Why stay so dim, so far from sight,
When you could shine like me, so bright?"

The lantern paused, its flame so deep,
"It is not brightness that I seek.
For though you burn, so wild and free,
You cast your shadow far from me."

"I glow for those who need the peace,
Who seek a moment's calm release.
I shine for hearts that feel the cold,
For those whose dreams are shy and bold."

The light then understood at last,
That brightness fades, but shadows pass.
For though the light may burn so high,
It is the lantern that holds the sky.

"Your glow is steady, soft and true,
While mine is fleeting, breaking through.
I race through time, I race through space,
But you bring warmth to every place."

And so the light, with humbled flame,
No longer sought the world to claim.
It shined beside the lantern's glow,
And learned the power of a steady flow.

For some may burn with radiant might,
But others shine with softer light.
In both the blaze and lantern's glow,
There's a beauty in the way they show.

So now the light and lantern stand,
Together lighting hearts and land.
For brightness fades, but gentle grace,
Will always find a quiet place.