Coward's Creed

"We are older by faith than by experience." - Thoreau

My fate held in the palm of his hand.

Hope is challenged in a hypocritical game of hopscotch.

Curtains drawn over a bed of roses.

A black bird of prey peering through the window of my soul.

Falling off the edge of the world.

Clinging to logic.

Arguing with reason.

Satan's minions marching and closing in.

Like a legion of liars and liquidators.

Lucifer laughs and bids me a fond farewell.

Whistling a diabolical dirge.

Tomorrow will dawn again.

Augmenting the ages.

Like a son of sorrow.

All my worst fears come to fruition.

Everything stripped to the core.

Testing me beyond limits.

What does it mean?

What should I think?

Where do I turn?

Nothing left.

Nothing, I tell you.

Nothing.

Damned nothing.

But you.

My mortality mangled, he now zeros in on my essence.

Relentless.

I cling to the only thing that hasn't been stripped away.

Not yet, anyway ...

Author's Note

"The coward wants resolution, which the brave man can do without. He recognizes no faith above a creed, thinking this straw by which he is moored does him good service, because his sheet anchor does not drag." - Thoreau

All due credit to Black Sabbath and Thoreau

Reviews

[sette]

and the only thing remaining after everything has been taken away is that faith, that somehow and someway you can find a reason behind this, understand the meaning and perhaps realize why everything happened then just accept slowly and still be grateful for the chance and that is what i call true bravery in the real sense of the word.

[Pete]

Y E S !!! thank you sette ... :)

[sette]

no problem

[barleygirl]

Your amazingly well-crafted poem reminds me of the old saying . . . courage is only courage when it’s tested (or something like that!) In your poem, I’m not feeling cowardice becuz the narrator is facing dragons even if not slaying them. Still, this is a minor point. Overall, your poem is as majestic as all your poems are . . . never a nuanced knoll but always a formidable mountain . . . your writing is always written with passion & meticulous crafting as deliberate as a mountain, but always artistic and never robotic. My favorite part here is the last half of the first stanza – it’s so how life might look to the coward. (((HUGS))) Fondly, Margie

[Pete]

E X A C T L Y !

"Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves." - Thoreau

you have a wonderful gift of being a meticulous reader - so wonderful, in fact, that you have explained some of the thought & feeling i had when i wrote it. you are greatly appreciated. thank you Margie ...

[barleygirl]

This means the world to me, ya know! *smile*