THE WARRIOR VS. THE SURVIVOR

Sunrises
Sunsets
Moonrises
Moonsets

The days run together
Minutes turn to hours
Hours turn to days
Days turn to weeks
Weeks turn to months
Time slows down
Bending in waves
That fold in on one another
That layer on top of one another
Dimensions morph
Portals open & close
The universe expands
The universe contracts.

A warrior defends, fights & conquers
A survivor perseveres, endures, outlives
I have done both
Throughout this life
I know both well
I move fluidly from one
To the other
Forgetting at times
Which one I am being
Forgetting at times
I am both.

Surviving is easy
To define
The game is clear
Get through it
But being a warrior
Requires I know what
I am fighting against
Or for.

A moment of confusion
A second of doubt
A single thought that
I am fighting
Against
Something
Anything
Out there
And this warrior loses.

But right now
In soothing
Stark
Clarity ….

(Even as time continues
It’s delusions
& I keep surviving
Hour
Day
Week
Month
At a time
Suns & Moons
Risings & Settings.)

I am focused
I know
Precisely
That
I am fighting
For all that
Is real to me
In here
I am fighting for
Love.

May
The warrior
Win.