Destination Obscurity Poem by Steve Santerre

Blood, the sweat of battle, by sword struck
Fallen, oh death why so sudden
If to shield one’s life is to guard it,
Why then can’t I see!
Failure, I presume as befallen on me
But no, to die with honour is no failure… right?

The curtain, not red, but wholly black
Dropped from the ceiling of the infinite
Blinded and deaf, alone I am.

But wait…is this it?
Have I sailed the seas, climbed the hills and died but still
Nothing oh nothing I receive?
Patience is it, to wait, to pass time
Must I sit forever in the lowness of this all
To do as told, to the surf the waves at their speed and pace
To move with the wind with no purpose and grace
Intent do I lack?
Seeking and wanting, reaching and obtaining
In possession of one’s own dreams, the private
Land of individual crafting, of imagination.

A lesson most important of all
To never sell ones land or offer away
Between the individual and the society
Schools and jobs, governments and wars
The marking of a grand puzzle, the pieces are we
I a piece, you a piece, but to not want a piece
Oh most foul of decisions, the person no more
The individual gone, disappeared
Nothing.

Fighting in war, no winner is to be crowned
Only death reins victorious, all sides go down
The test of time and space, all fates meet at one place
Destination obscurity, life we should embrace.