Pawns and Queens
by Odin Roark

How unpredictable life’s battlefield.

From birth to death,
defenses circumventing sword's thrust,
taking breath's campaign,
becoming fate’s naked warrior.

Hopscotch we will for survival,
maneuvering across checkered landscapes,
peril's gravity tugging and pulling,
mind accepting surprise attacks,
hidden landmines,
predator strategies.

Sometimes we pause…

Avoid distractions.

Think ever further ahead.

Realize…

Wisdom balancing the mind’s options,
knowing the Queen’s protection of the King
needs the sometimes chaotic nature of the pawns,
tenaciously surviving storms of intelligence,
discovering endurance often foreshadows victory.

Then…

The lesson learned prepares the next challenge of time,
knowing the game is nothing but a lifelong schema of reasoning.

The fortunate…

Stumble into an epiphany of enigma’s reward,
discerning life’s most valuable crown of success
is not the Now,
but the To Be.