VALIANT

a man sits on a park bench,
his head buried in his hands.
Tears flow around them like waterfalls,
his sobs eerily scare the pigeons away.
He looks to be a decent man
but is troubled you can tell
by his slumped over stance,
suit and tie, briefcase nearby.
He looks like he should be
heading a meeting in a boardroom,
not here on the park bench
seemingly filled with gloom
Perception leads to insight
into the life of a down trodden man
who walked the concrete pavement
seeking to change the cards in his hands.
Raised to always strive for the best
taught by his father to learn the world
and pass their test,
studied their methods of labor
but today their lives unrest.
He no longer jests,
his body is filled with stress
all the pain he ingests.
He’s thinking of his children on his left,
wallowing to his wife on his right.
She knew his fight,
she knew that things were getting tight.
On this early night
his facial expressions were tight.
She couldn’t figure out
what was his kryptonite.
Her superman was doubled over,
her leprechaun was at the end of the rainbow
but there was no pot of gold nor four leaf clover
this was not the end
in no way was this is over
this was a moment in time
he was bowing his head for a moment of silence
he’s praying to God in repentance
aligning himself to take a new stance
making the past a remembrance
he lifted his head
looked at both his sides and smiled
got up embracing hand in hand
and with them began to take the next step
began to hike the extra mile.