I am Endurance
tan lines, salt and sand,
i’ve arrived
i’ve tamed lions
i’ve held my head high above perturbed water
i’ve risen from the red womb of mountains
up and down, up and down
i’ve walked dehydrated passed mobs of supporters
offering water and sponge and ice to my fevered face
my stomach twisting with parasites, protozoa, and past pain
it is not just muscle memory i speak of,
but the epigenetics of my race, marathoners running from Roman demigods, mother’s mouths filled with the realization of almost- victories.
When i passed you and you kissed me while the onlookers yelled:
“some people dream of this and your doing it”
how could i have not sobbed on such a beautiful mouth?
This poem appeared first on University Of Calgary in Qatar.