The Race
Location
Darkness behind my eyelids
Earth experiences the same darkness
As the sun’s light is captured by the moon
My curtains of flesh rise with the sun
As it illuminates my surroundings
I realize my journey will begin soon
My movements are slow at first
Muscles hindered by the morning cold
And still damp from the morning dew
Mother wipes away the dampness
Tells me to get dressed
And says I have so much to do
Father nudges me; encourages me forward
I must prepare. I must prepare
My parents teach me everything they know
The morning begins to warm
And my movements are quicker now
No more time for preparing. It’s time to go
I hesitantly wrap my hands around the handle bars
And clumsily step left foot onto the left pedal
Father and I meet eye to eye
He gives me a gentle, yet powerful nod
I slide my jaw slightly to the left
A deep breath in lets out a deep sigh
I re-grip the handle bars
Letting the dense rubber dig in to my fingers and palms
My eyes wander down to the checkered line I stand behind
I quickly look up and to the left, seeing a man in sight
He is holding a gun and my heart starts to beat vigorously
BAM! It goes off. It’s time to pass the line
My right foot kicks off with the strength of five bulls
My bike begins to roll forward. I am in motion now
As my right foot crashes down onto the right pedal
I push down with the right. I push down with the left
My chain must be lubricated perfectly
I hear no squeaking or grinding metal
The road is freshly paved and level
The tar fumes waft up into my nose
As the sun continues to rise
A few birds sing to me
Blue jays are camouflaged by the blue sky
I look left with my eyes
I see people caged in inside a building
Riding a bike with no wheels
They don’t really know what it’s all about
Yeah, they might be getting their exercise in
Getting their bodies fit working in
But they sure aren’t working out
Ah, so beautiful is the scenery
Enveloped by the greenery
Riding and rolling along with ease
Yes, my body and mind begin to appease
All the while I smile still
As the ball of light rises above the hill
I feel such warmth on my face
And ease into a steady pace
Oh, those people inside are missing out
They really don’t know what it’s all about
I pedal and pedal. I ride along
My muscles are warmed now and feeling strong
I can feel the sun lay its hand on my hair
A feeling that I could never compare
The sun stares directly down at me
It’s as good as it will ever be
But then I begin to approach the hill
I remember Dad say “there’s a way if you have the will”
I look up to see him standing in the crowd
My hands tighten down
Pushing pedals harder towards the ground
Dad, I’m gonna make you proud.
My mother is standing next to him
I feel a surge coming from within
I say, “I’ll make them proud” with all my heart
As my eyes examine my father’s face
I realize something is out of place
I hear the blast ring in my ears from the start
My mind begins reeling
And I am overwhelmed with an incredible feeling
As I pan now to my mother’s face
The bikers pass me
And I realize I must be
Competing in a fierce race
I’ll admit I’m biking with less ease
But the course is still a breeze
As I work my way towards the front
I look at the other bikers and I can tell
My parents had trained me well
I hear the other bikers grunt
People offer water; the warning I didn’t heed
It’s something the other bikers need
I can see them dripping water mixed with salt
Although I’m not winning
My lips and teeth are still grinning
As their overexerted muscles bring them to a halt
More bikers behind me now,
Less bikers in front of me
Surrounded by rolling fields
In the distance is one tree
I look down and see four hands
There must be two me’s
I look up to see fields
In the distance are two trees
A bead of sweat
Perched on the side of my face
Back feeling exceptionally wet
Can’t slow down in the race
A warming gentle spirit
Now a blazing, hazing sun
Tormenting the biker’s run
Now I begin to fear it
A drink of water doesn’t clear it
Chapped lips; now I’m the parched one
Cotton mouth can’t be undone
The warning! I didn’t adhere it!
I must continue. I must.
I can feel my skin seer
And begin to believe and fear
That I will soon spontaneously combust
Make my body and mind able
Lay it all out on the table
Parents told me to save nothing for the end
But I can’t! Loss of nutrients! I’m shaking
Vision blurry and muscles aching
An approaching storm could be my friend
The temperatures cool. Ah relief
But again, I am in disbelief
Be careful what you wish for
Dark clouds bring strong winds
And the rain begins
A slight drizzle turns to a steady pour
An anticipated friend, but again an enemy
As the driving rain battles me
So detrimental and corrosive
Face stinging from the rain
Distracted by my grinding chain
To metal, the properties of rain are erosive
Colder and colder, my muscles now differently shake
But I can’t stop. There is no break
Haven’t stopped from the morning wake
There is way too much at stake
Grrr! I grip down harder on the bars
Body out of juice but brain is good so far
Like my hands, my eyebrows and face tighten down
As I push my feet harder towards the ground
Another obstacle ahead
As my wheels enter onto a stone bed
Now losing traction on this steep hill
I push harder, increasing my heart rate
Fatigued muscles make joints compensate
But there is a way if I have the will
The last biker ahead of me begins to stop
I must pass him and reach the top
I promised my parents I’d make them proud
I’m so close. I’m so close
But pain is on overdose
I can see the finish line with a swarming crowd
As my bike surpasses the biker I shout
My body has finally given out
Intolerable pain reduces my bike’s speed
I push down on the pedal once again
So close to the race’s end
A tear mixes with the rain as I proceed
Persistently my bike is slowing
My mind deceives my body to keep going
A want and desire turns into a need
It’s too much. I close my eyes
And connect to where my soul lies
I must win. I must supersede
A burst of anger… love…so surreal
There is something different inside me I feel
Exhaustion, pain, hunger, and thirst begins to recede
A surge of adrenaline flows through my veins
Surpassed the heat. Surpassed the rains
Surpassed the aches. Surpassed the pains
Surpassed the mountains. Surpassed the plains
Surpassed corroded, grinding chains
I’m the only one left, the one who remains.
Exhausted, I collapse into the mud
Wheezing deep and slowing of my blood
Can’t feel cold; can’t feel heat
The world is spinning and spinning
I no longer dream of winning
As I feel myself be lifted to my feet
“You look as if you’re almost dead
Must have a crazy mind or a stupid head
I don’t know if it is you or I that has been beat”
A smile creeps across my face
Knowing I gave it all in the race
Even though it has brought me to my end
I would rather have an ending to embrace
Than to settle for a slower pace
So that my body was good enough to race and lose again
The rain has turned into a cold snow
I can feel I’m nearing the end as the clouds cover the moon’s glow
I sit on the bike and lift my feet from the ground
I turn around at the finish line and regress back down