Labels

These labels set before you
are fixed with superglue
and the scabs left behind scar
like broken steel in winter.
I wish I could smooth the fear
lacing the road stretching off
into the horizon, but that vein
is more vital than the steps
you leave behind; never trust
a path more sand than pebbles.
These labels set before you
are gifts of danger, contests
to overcome before each ounce,
and in weighing you’ll see
these potholes aren’t so troubled,
and tomorrow the sun will shine
just as fiercely as it did today.
These labels set before you
are not labels but waiting tasks,
not guarantees but challenges,
heavy but no more permanent
than a cloud passing high above.

(dtn)