Pep Talk

author’s note:

“Good to the last drop”
           -- Maxwell House coffee slogan


PEP TALK

Have you ever felt the saggy feeling
of playing for a team
that loses game after game?

You may enter each match
with hope
with determination
but after so many losses
you can’t quite shake the feeling
your efforts will end in defeat
no matter how hard you fight.

You may then try
to soothe your wounds
by saying:
At least, we made them earn their win.
But deep into the season
the harsh gray sound of cynicism
can be heard beneath that positive statement.

At that point
you merely wish to hang in
’til the last minute of the last game—
you want to show courage
you want to show strength
as you sit in the locker room
with blood sweating down your face.

At such low times
I force myself to stand
then force my legs to dance—
then force my voice to sing
a song that says:

“I build power in my heart
  as I stare into the abyss
  of another painful loss.
  In this way, I could one day become
  a saint who eases suffering—
  the patron saint of perpetual losers.

“So I must keep playing.
  No time to retire.
  I’ll retire when I die.
  And maybe not even then.”

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