The Walk of Shame

Rain, rain, rain,
Lashing down relentlessly,
As we play our game of 69s,
Yet it doesn't stop us,
Or slow our momentum,
As we smash goal-after-goal,
Into the back of the net.

A ball flies into the box,
For number 68,
I throw myself toward it,
A diving header,
Glorious in its execution,
Puts the ball in the back of the net.

Another ball's launched in,
I see it,
And see nothing but glory,
I throw myself at it once more,
Looking for the fabled 69,
I connect perfectly,
But I lack accuracy,
And it goes a mile wide...

NO!

I am now guarding the goal,
Hoping and hoping,
That it won't be me,
Who concedes the dreaded 69,
And pays the penalty,
By facing the long and infamous walk,
The walk of shame...

The ball comes in yet again,
And up jumps the fox,
Heading the ball goalward,
His aim was true,
My fate was sealed,
As even when I dived despairingly,
And got fingertips onto the ball,
I knew it was in...

I was so close,
But not close enough,
The ball had spun into the bottom corner,
And anguish and disappointment wash over me,
As I now face the forfeit to end all forfeits,
I face the walk of shame.

All around the pitch I must walk,
The loneliest walk anyone could ever face,
In the duration of their lives,
So with my head down, and while soaking wet,
I am left alone to reflect,
On how I ended up with this punishment,
Wondering how the hell I lost!

All of this of course,
While the others sit in the centre,
Laughing and jeering,
Yet also applauding,
Applauding because they feel I was wronged,
Believing I didn't deserve to walk the walk,
But that, I suppose, is the beauty of the game...

Even if it does undermine the walk of shame.

War

I decide to join the army,
And am immediately trained in their philosophy,
I am taught to feel no pain,
Even when blood comes down like rain,
All forms of emotion are beaten out of me,
Until I wander around aimlessly, like a zombie,
So when the day comes and I have to fight,
I won't drop my gun and flee into the night.

After years of honing and training,
I find myself suddenly wishing,
To be involved in conflict, to be involved fighting,
To be involved in war, shooting and killing,
Then the commander recognises that,
There are no qualities in which I lack,
So he finally decides to ship me out,
Ship me out to war torn Iraq.

I have got my wish, and feel a tinge of joy,
Being out here, uncovering secret ploys,
I fight for my country, I fight with pride,
I fight with honour, and never try to hide,
I feel no pain, even when comrades die,
I see old friends in agony on the ground,
Screaming in pain, before ceasing to make a sound.

But my emotions begin to return to me,
As I unexpectedly lose all sight,
Of what it is I'm fighting for,
But too late it seems,
As I get shot and fall to the floor.
As I lie on the ground, dying,
I begin to start wondering...

What exactly is the point of war?

Tomorrow

Tomorrow is the day I've chosen,
Tomorrow is my D-day,
Tomorrow is the day I shall pluck up my courage,
Tomorrow is the time for action,
Tomorrow is the moment of truth,
And when tomorrow becomes today,
And when today becomes yesterday,
I will look back on it in one of two ways,
With a triumphant smile as the day she became mine,
Or with enormous regret as the day I ruined everything...

(the reason I include Tomorrow is because I actually nearly did ruin something very important the day after writing it - Tomorrow stands as a reminder that I should never take my own writing too seriously).

The Void

Once upon a time,
A feeling of excited nervousness,
Would wash over me,
When I'd see you approaching,
But in recent times,
That feeling has gradually disappeared,
And it's almost as if,
You're just another person...

No, no, no,
It wasn't supposed to be this way,
You were supposed to be THE ONE,
My soul mate,
My life's partner,
But why then has my love of you
Suddenly diminished
Into nothing, as if it never existed?

I can't comprehend what happened,
At how my heart could just suddenly
Change it's mind,
And practically stop beating,
Leaving me faced with something unusual,
A massive, empty void,
A void that once contained my love for you,
A void that I thought...

Would never be empty.

The Price of Friendship

The teachers look at me angrily,
And they ask me,
How can you afford to be outside,
Spending time with your friends,
When you have your Leaving Cert,
In a matter of weeks?

Well, I reply,
Knowledge is indeed a valuable thing,
And it does come at a price,
But spending time with my friends?
That is priceless,
Which is why I can afford to do it.