(Good guys wear black… I mean white…
I mean black… I mean…)

How many hats can anyone wear?
Then again, who really cares?
But if you’re one of the caring few,
Consider the consequence of those we choose.

No matter what your current hat
It’s worn in shades of white through black.
Most are worn in these shades of gray.
It’s no one’s fault, just the way
We perceive ourselves on any given day.

There’s the “father” hat, often white,
Just as often black, if viewed through
Distorted lenses of domestic strife,
But white if stifling social obligations
Hold tight.

The “labor” hat is white, if self-sacrificing
No-life-of-your-own, team player
Work-for-a-song is your paradigm,
But black, if family, health, and
Self-realization are your crimes.

Most of us wear some shade of gray,
But there are plenty of absolute whites
to drive the blacks and grays away.

–LE – an older one from the early 2010s