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The Shadows Of The Past

By: Shalaj
Competition Year: 2013
Votes (1) | Comments (0)
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Amidst a barrage of rain crouched a sturdy man at the starting line.
With clenched fists, gritted teeth and a tingling spine.
The same old story - oft they chased elusive fame and glory.
The world beyond the ribbon he did stare,
With eyes of desire and a heart with flare,
As drops of ice cold water splashed on his nape,
Shadows of a past unforgotten began taking shape.

Footsteps, a splatter and a splash,
Washed over his mind, dashing for a rehash,
Washed like the rain - imperturbable and unrelenting.
He stood by a soldier, blood-painted hands, face ashen.
He died for the people, he died for a passion,
Merciless to it's will, boot or drill,
Till the clock ticked down from dusk to dawn.
Engulfed by fiends of smoke and devils of darkness that started to spawn
And the rain kept on, the rain kept on...

A tug, a snap and a bang of authority was heard.
With a tear on his cheek and a sneer on his visage,
He vanquished the demons of the past and took off undeterred.
He felt the wind hit him with force,
A course of adrenaline sinking the dregs of remorse.
To be alive and to be one - mind, body, heart and soul,
Nothing else mattered anymore for a spirit whole.
An inchoate ghost of a smile took harbor on his lips.
He was speeding towards happiness - a happiness that could eclipse.
The shadows of the past that were not to last.
A free bird he was, with horizons for him to transgress,
After all, what is life if not an eternal quest for fleeting happiness?
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