like courage written in chalk

like courage written in chalk

fading into loose powder,

swiftly we retreat.

players unsheathe their daggers

showing one another they mean business,

limb for limb: could any bluff be more evident?

ashamed for these struggles,

our clothes scatter after each battle,

the conquered shedding skins,

this game hijacked out from under our noses.

like courage written in chalk

fading into loose powder,

we hesitate joining other armies

who march on foreign soils, weaponless,

abandoning shotgun towers

only to hobble amongst wasted corpses,

across fettered bridges.

and out there just beyond that skeleton playground,

a fading searchlight glances

as we cower in the red mud,

the obsolete armies noticing our breathing

yet continue ambling rearward,

for we are not worthy trophies:

consolation prizes.

and we thought we were invisible.

presumed we were fearless.

out here stranded on this frozen battlefield

we fade into loose powder,

forever left with our unrequited appetites,

like courage written in chalk.

7/15/79

Bisbee, AZ