Final Resolve

The Resolve

It’s often been noted by those in passing,

That some folks are stronger, some more dashing.

With a lifetime to create the person that we want to be,

Has resulted in this person, a common man who I see.

There’s no shame in being the way I have become,

Rumpled and graying, and is far better than some.

Years of experiences find me tattered and downtrodden,

From valleys of sorrows, mountains climbed, and knowledge broadened.

Some say it is life’s lessons we all need to learn,

These trials and tribulations, conflicts that concern.

Some say it is only what’s common to man,

These conquests to conquer, the need to command.

Yet, in memories, I see lingering far and near,

All the battles and temptations only brought fear.

The losses were many, far more than expected,

That led me to conclusions, and decisions selected.

This last mile that I walk looking this way and that,

Is a time of reconciliation, a time without spats.

For to continue regretting things that were done,

Is to lay a trap for many who cannot overcome.

Some ask if the results were worth the time,

Fierce competition with unseen opponents, very unkind.

I ponder their comment, their questioning again and again,

Knowing life’s war that is fought, no one could win.

So, I’ll smile in the face of the remaining years,

Understanding that some things are not as they appear.

And having known many adversaries both far and near,

I’ll keep what was taught me by loved ones dear.

To run the race with patience prayerfully instills,

Hope in what is ahead after surrendering my will.

A place without trials or conflict or human vanity awaits,

A place beyond the walls of this world and its embrace.