Indomitable

There was a gentle stubbornness about them 

In an infuriatingly nice manner 

 

They were the type of person

Who rose to meet each day 

With every reason to complain 

They gathered and rose anyway  

While life gave great and plentiful blessings 

She took a great deal from them as well 

 

Stubbornness served them well 

On both sides of the fence 

In times of blessing 

Holding them tightly 

In times of trouble 

Refusing to give up

 

Their body

Began the process of dying 

Long before the spirit

Would even acknowledge it

And even in those days 

This gentle stubbornness 

Refused to give way 

 

I cannot begin to fathom

The battles betwixt 

The spirit and the body 

One refusing to yield 

The other refusing to hold on 

 

In the end 

(An ironic turn of phrase)

Strength decayed

And the body

The house of their indomitability 

Held the spirit no more

 

I will not visit

In this writing

The place beyond this life

You are welcome there

If you so wish

 

My concern

My words

My eyes

Are looking 

At this plane of existence 

 

I have seen others  

Living in defeat

The eyes

Devoid of life’s sparkle

The actions 

Listless and lifeless 

 

Such was not the case

For my friend 

They never lost the sparkle

Even as the flame flickered

It could still be seen 

Through the haze of pain 

 

Their will outlasted their strength

Indomitability gave way to inevitability

The survivor survives no more

Immeasurably great is our loss

 

However,

They left us so much

Not of gold or silver

But of their stubbornness

Their refusal to yield

Their indomitability

 

I hope

In whatever time

I have remaining

On this plane

I am able to honor

The memory of my friend

In a matching refusal to lose

 

In honor of friends and family

I have lost throughout the years

May your positive impact

Be in every wave 

Crashing upon my shore

 

I hope 

I may be

Indomitable

 

© Ron Simpson Jr.

October 20, 2022