Life and Death

We live life and fear death

Is it that life is a blessing and death its curse

Does life ever seem to be a curse and death its blessing

Do they hold that which the other lacks

Should we embrace death for something new and unknown while we fear life for what we already know tomorrow could possibly hold

Which is better

To end that which has already started

Or

To start that which will end

Is life its suffering and death its peace

Is death the suffering of a peaceful life

For those that go they are gone and those that come will soon go themselves

Is death something life can not comprehend

Is life something death no longer has a purpose for

Should we focus less on being alive or being death

And merely focus on being

Our existence can not be put into terms such as life and death

For we are what they are not

And the are not what we are

We are one in the same a being that will always be

The Journey

Life has presented him with every challenge imaginable

Life hit him hard

Time and time again until he fell

He was mocked and cast out

Beaten and scorned until all he could do was crawl

Life became his curse and wished to destroy him

Do not pity him

For every time he fell he picked himself back up

Every time he was beaten he turned the other cheek

He crawled until he could limp

He limped until he could walk

He walked through his adversity

He rose above the trials and tribulations set before him

His will is that of an unbreakable element

With every step he moves further

With every stride his past shrinks in the distance

His future grows nearer

His journey continues

And his fate lies in his own hands

The Beast

A noble prince ascends to the thrown

Loved and adored by all his people

Peace and prosperity rain over all the land

But as the years go by

Seasons change

As does his heart

It becomes hard and unforgiving

His veins grow icy and cold

His people are pillaged and slain

But he turns a blind eye

His people cry out for help

But he turns a deaf ear

He no longer cares about their petty needs

He gorges himself on the finest there is while his people suffer

He is his only priority

He does as he will

He sends men off to die while women and children work for his gain

Does he see the pain and sorrow he has brought upon others

Does he see the suffering of those under his command

Does he realize that his actions are tearing apart those who loved him

He is blinded by rage and consumed by hatred

He releases his anger on those who only showed kindness

His furry has destroyed all that which has surrounded him

His life now lay in ruin

His people have abandoned him

His friends are no more

He is cold and alone patiently awaiting the blessing of death

Excalibur

The coming of age has arrived

This day has long been awaited

Knighted and accepted into the order

He forges a blade of unequivocal magnitude

This sword which he carries strikes all those before him

Life and death balance on the keen edge of his magnificent blade

It became the source of his pride and strength

The sword made him who he is

And so the day came that in the haze of battle his sword was lost to him

No other blade lying upon the ground would do

His was the only one that gave him power

It gave him strength

It gave him speed

And now it was lost

As was his life

For he no longer realized what made him who he is

A sword is but a sword

It holds no power and gives no strength

For it is in the hands of he who wields the blade that power, strength and speed is held

It was his years of training that made him strong

It was his unbreakable personality that gave him his drive

Not the sword

He was only as good as he believed himself to be

And when he put his belief in a sword rather than his heart

He was only as good as the sword will ever be

The Stream

The sound of flesh and bone meeting iron and steel echoed across the battle field

The screams of those in pain rose to the heavens

He saw the sun glisten off the blade that struck

His life faded

And he was no more

Something too radiant to comprehend then blinded him

His breath returned

His wounded healed

And his heart beat once more

A voice spoke to him and asked him if he fought for honor and glory

He answered "No"

Then surely you must fight for wealth and happiness ?

He answered "No"

Then tell my why is it that you fight ?

He answered

I do not

I do not strike

I do not fight

Then tell me what is it that you do ?

He answered

I withstand

I receive

I bare no malice towards those who strike me

I show no violence towards those who wish to be my undoing

I hold no dominance over my opposition

I merely flow like water in a stream

For when it is confronted by a boulder the stream does not fight

It merely continues to flow around the boulder smoothing even the roughest edge

And it continues as such until the boulder is but a pebble and washed out to sea

The boulder could never stop the stream

For it is elegant and calm

It is smooth and graceful

It receives

It withstands

It merely flows

Light encompassed him and he found himself once again in the midst of battle

And the voice whispered in his ear

"Be like the stream and Flow"

The Messenger

War has ended and men return to their families

They bury their dead

They mourn the loss of fallen comrades

They rebuild cities lost in the wake of battle

They are tired

They are hungry

They are weak

Neither side has won after decades of battle

They no longer realized who they were fighting

They no longer remembered what they were fighting for

They no longer remember why the fighting began

They no longer have the strength to fight and with to talk

The talking began when the fighting stopped

And the fighting will begin when the talking ends

Something was mis said

Something was mis heard

The messenger was to blame

And men go to war

They fight until they talk and talk until they fight

And thus the cycle will encompass humanity for all eternity

True Love

She walks along the shore leaving footprints in the sand

The ebbing waves slowly wash them away

It washes away her past and carries away her sorrow

Her past is now clean and her future lies untouched

Walking along the shore she sees another set of footprints running parallel to hers every step of the way

She looks up and sees him

Her knight in shining armor

He beloved has returned from battle

They embrace in and unbreakable bond of true love

A love that can not be broken

Neither by the will of man nor the jaws of death it self

Her love gave him the strength to en dour the hardship of war

His love for her kept him living from day to day on the front lines

Their love can en dour any trial set before them

And thus their embrace ends

She continues walking along the shore

He rides into battle knowing he has something worth dying for

Which in turn is something worth living for

No matter the distance between them they share the same heart

A heart of gold laden with virtue

They will never be apart

For ever entwined in this life and beyond

The Call

The call was sent forth across the land

It was heard in every village and town

"Kinsman brandish your swords and bare your shields, War is upon us"

He answered the call

He went to war

He fought

He killed

He bleed

He lived

He suffered every day

Weeks turned to months

Months turned to years

And the war rages on

He no longer fought for his king

He did not fight for his country nor the people of it

He fought that he may go home

He fought so he could once again hold his wife

He fought that he may see his daughter be married

He fought that he may show his son how to be a man

He fought for what he loved

He fought till he could fight no more

He answered the call and payed the price

They gave him no funeral

There were no words said on his behalf

His grave went unmarked

Along side countless others that perished that fateful day

His name was forgotten

His deeds lost in the sands of time

Warrior

He is bound to his honor

They call him a hero but in the midst of battle death is what consumes him

He breathes the rotting stench on the battle field

He sees the carnage wasteland that lay before him

He hears the screams of those dying in agony

They call him a great warrior and have feasts in his name

They praise him for his noble deeds

War does not make him great

Every time his eyes are closed he sees the faces of those who drew their final breath upon his sword

He envisions the families that lost Father, Husbands and Sons

He is a killer, a cold blooded monster

His acts shall never be forgiven

His sins will forever torment him

How could he be a hero when life is what he destroys

How could he ever save a life

The day he saves a life will be the day his own is taken

Only then will others live because of what he has done

For him there will be no more war

No more fighting

No more death

No more pain

And in this way he will live on forever

As a legend

As a man

Who died for something he could not live for

Knight

From dust he came and dust he shall go forever shall he live
His life will endure all this existence has to offer him
He will search every corner of the globe to the very extent of his being
His life is to be lived for others
His sword to strike those who obscure peace
His shield to defend those being struck
His steed to carry him to those who call his name
His blood to be poured so that others may live
His life has but one purpose as to fight that fighting may stop
His vision is that of a dreamer
For he knows not that his goal is surreal
He lives that he may die
And dies that others may live