My opponent and I
Stand face to face
Under an empty sky
Her hands at her side,
Across the field
She seems to glide
My hands are shaking
My knees knock… knock.
Our eyes lock.
A blink and she’s here.
So fast I can not breath, I do not run
The end that forever I have dread is near.
She blinks and exhales,
I feel her warmth,
My defiance fails.
I cannot speak,
I cannot cry,
I am too weak,
I can’t deny
The itching
Clawing
Clutching
Cutting
Ripping
Breaking
Of my heart.
I can’t restart
I can not let go
But that she already knows.
I release my fate
Release my fists
I stare into Hell’s gate
I gaze into her face.
And we embrace.
Forgiveness is the impossible.
It is the only way.
There is nothing to say.
Tears stream down
My miserable cheeks
I am empty and weak
Each day and week,
The months that speak
Countless volumes of immeasurable decay
That has amounted every day
Without her here,
Disappears.
Guilt and pain wash over me
I whisper
I’m sorry.
She does not speak
She has her prey
And she touches its cheek.
The chains that have bound me
Are tighter yet
What I deserve I am bound to get.
Yet somehow…
That beautiful face
Conceals words of immeasurable grace.
I hear her say
It’s okay.
My shackles clink
Upon the floor.
We speak no more.
The Only Joe 