Return Trip

running backward
trying to catch yesterday’s breath
I stumble, still
reaching for perfection and euphoria
lost in mediocrity

a blink of an eye
dismisses years
of scratching and clawing
searching for fame
I walk the treadmill on a faster
route to nowhere

pieces of me shatter and break
unable to rejuvenate
my vulnerability exposed
like so much air
fading away in colors of
lost memories

like a forgotten breeze
my youth beckons
pulling me towards a time and place
full of promise and hope

and I answer
closing my eyes in prayer for a return
trip
tempting my aging heart
with the winged promise of
eternal love
and ageless beauty

staring at the mirror’s reflection
hoping for the face of a hundred
tears ago
only wisdom and maturity
look back
and I smile in hopes of tomorrow