'Maturity,' father had slowly begun,
'Is knowing you're wrong and accepting it, son.
There's prudence in pausing with patience and joy -
And hearing the wisdom in others, my boy.
'A person's perspective,' he said with a smile,
'Is plain if you walk in their shoes for a while.
And if you can do it - if maybe you do -
You might understand, and agree that it's true.'
I followed his reasons, and nodded, polite;
Perhaps that was logic - perhaps he was right.
Perhaps there was truth in his claim all along...
'I'm twenty,' I countered: 'I'm right, and you're wrong.'