I Like Hemingway... For Alexi Who Knows And Alicia Who Destroys Poem by r james sterzinger

I like Hemingway
he wrote of life of death
of youth
of booze
he wrote of the madness
of being a man
he wrote of how you go through it all
when love becomes incomplete
when booze is not enough to take away that pain
when death stares you in the face
when you make that commitment
to follow that black angel
wherever she will lead you

death faces you everyday
it wears the faces of wives
it resides in the eyes
of the animals you hunt
it resides in avenging angels
whether they live in Spanish Bulls
or men on the other side of battle

I like Hemingway
he showed us that life
is an art
is a craft
and in art must lie truth
and if there is no truth in it
it isn't worthy of the ink
or the paper

I like Hemingway
he showed us
'this is the path to being a man
to accept what you do
and live with the consequences.
and never ever abandon yourself
or you craft.'

he showed us how
to take it to the ring
take the punches
take the knockdowns
and never ever snivel

I like Hemingway
he showed us the only one a man needs
to truly trust in
is himself
and to live with the joy of life
and the path of destruction
that much of it is the same, anyhow.

I like Hemingway
because he had the moxie
to show us
that when the bull
and the madness is too much
you need to look heaven in the eyes
and have a worthy exit strategy
because that too is art
and counts for something
it is life's finest art.