Marathon Runner

Her face was warm like butter

but she was married to a nutter—

the marathon runner 

a man who's got his priorities in the gutter 

a gold-medal stunner 

he blew her heart with a .45 gunner—

the marathon runner

is a stone-cold cunner. 

He lives his life on the wing

each woman a new fling—

the marathon king

lives every day like it’s Spring 

but his dead wife's heart stings

from the grave her hatred rings—

the marathon king

will pay for his sins.

New beginnings arise

when the sun sets at night—

the marathon life

will end in strife. 

He runs over where she lays 

where she’s been crying for days—

the marathon way 

will end on this gray day in May 

despite her decay 

she calls on nature to obey—

the marathon way

for the vines circle his feet at her sway.  

The true meaning of Rebirth

starts in the Earth—

Nature’s mirth

to reclaim your own worth. 

The marathon runner

end where he began—

down in the dirt and rudder

with his lover.

About the Author

Michaela Coll is a junior English major with a concentration in Creative Writing and a minor in Professional Writing. In her free time, she enjoys writing poetry, spending time with her family, listening to music, talking to her friends, and creating art. She’s grown a deep passion for discussing literature and writing over the past few years and strives to use her own writing to help others. 

About the Photographer

Gabriel is a passionate Deaf Latino visual artist. He received his BFA from Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) in the School of Photographic Arts and Sciences in December 2018. As a Visual Media student, he specializes in Photography, Graphic Design and Video. Gabriel’s love for travel and adventure has taken him to four countries, where he has captured his journeys through his lens. He migrated from Venezuela in 2012 looking for the opportunities his country denied him, and from there his life gave an U turn as he started to achieve his dreams. Currently he is employed by RIT/NTID's Department of Access Services, as well as working as a Freelance artist.