Youth

Young, brilliant, temerity 

Of mind, body, spirit. 

Nimble feet 

Flying across miles of open terrain.

Strong arms 

Wiry and without limit.

Shoulders not yet bent 

With the worries of adulthood. 

Fierce independence driving 

Belief in the Power of Me. 

Now injuries lurk 

Behind each incorrect movement or miscalculation.

 I long for the days when I soared on wings like eagles.

-The Poet of Windy Blue

This poem was written as I was battling another flare-up of achilles tendinitis in 2021 right before I was to attend a very demanding Army course.