In It to Win It

I am a work in progress.
I want to be a kinder, more caring, more loving person,
who is more understanding, more tolerant, and
more forgiving;
I will never judge you
because I am God's creation
and he doesn't make cheap imitations
of himself.
Early in life I caught a foot in my mouth—
Not my own, but someone’s.
It doesn’t matter whose because there were too many.
The only way I could fight back was to be
A huge disappointment to my attackers.
I excelled.
Not at everything but at most things that counted with me.
I had no interest in their outcomes.
I filled in the blanks where I had lost my teeth.
I left footprints where I was not supposed to.
I smothered my failures with footprints.
They followed me everywhere
Reminding me that one day I could look back at them
And see where they were pointing.
For miles they were two steps forward and
Three steps backward until one day
When they became three steps forward
And two steps backward.
And now there is no looking back.
Now I am catching up.
And one day I am convinced
I will find myself crossing the starting line
With no place to go but
Forward.