The Daydreaming of an Old Woman

My foe, in a duel, defeats me

Binds me, gags me, and carries me off.

I know it is hopeless

I won’t be beaten or hit or tied,

I will have no wounds, no gashes

Not even a lashing on my back or side.

It’s disappointing.

This surprises you?

Haven’t you ever dreamed

Of a daring adventure,

A foe, a great menace

In a fight against evil and good?

Have you ever imagined the front lines

On that epic war day

Pushing your hands out

And crying with all the might you could?

I know of one so bold

As to wish to be put to the test.

That’s me.

To be known as Odysseus,

Like Ruth and Esther,

With the fortitude of Samson in my hands

To stand firm beyond all odds.

To change what is common,

That’s my desire,

My deepest, warm heart of all hearts.

I want, beyond everything,

beyond fortune or fame,

To face that great trial alone.

My heart will race,

My spirit with soar

And finally with one sharp retort

I will win.

I’ll know of my bravery

My strength against tears,

How, despite the dire straits,

I was strong

If I was killed, I became a martyr

If I escaped, brave and cunning am I.

And if, somehow, my captor released me

I’d have done more good than all heroes combined

…

I sit on my porch in the sun,

No longer in a perilous fight

In most things, I now am proved wrong

As I shed tears for my smallest plight

I am reminded of an unchanging fact;

I am weak.