In pondering, a man did think
A thought both cold and commonplace
A bruised and barnacled memory
Scenes flashed as fast as he could blink
His time was gone, he’d run his race
He saw his staggered children grown
He saw his wife laid down two years
And though he knew no time remained
He couldn’t help but wish he’d sown
more seeds of hope; caused fewer tears
For in this man’s dark memories
A shaded, shadowed demon rests
from toiling: tearing, sucking dry
the love of life. The gnarled trees
of bitterness rooted deep ‘neath his chest
Howling like an injured wolf
So proud and strong, his heart a lock-
with no key to let the cooling waters
quench his burning mind and free
his soul. His ship: all but drydocked.
He always thought his will might start
a righteous climb, a building block
But his stony shell, so hard, so brave
Could not protect his stubborn heart
From death and now too late
He found when pressed
like juice from grapes
His soul went off half cocked
Tears flowed, tears fell from a rock
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