Hubris

Among the twisted trunks of the olive grove

we can lead lives that will outwit death

we can juggle fate and the moirai none of them

can allot enough suffering and pain

to stop our path forward we are not gods

but they are with us as we fight as heroes

and catch their fancy by the hubris we carry

that of mortals who still believe in Olympus

and aim for its unassailable heights behind clouds

It was not always so many of the demigods

the gifted men with half a nature divine

half human and therefore mortal where can their

allegiance lie in whose army will they battle

I have never believed the myths fantastic tales

of our somber rites of passage from childhood into

elders whose wisdom comes slowly thought by thought

deed by deed it is virtue itself it is glory and honor

the laurel crowns await the warmhearted victor

I await only the golden glow of her hair against

the sea the light of Aphrodite breaks on the dawn

she will be named Venus by Rome but we will pay it

no heed the Greek pantheon stands immortal

foundational there is no civilization without it

there is no drive to conquer the barrenness

of nature and craft an abode fitting for a king

and his sycophant entourage drenched in guile

watching for an opening for the broadsword

to penetrate and sever the crown from the head

to wrench the neck from its armor tangled in mail

that cannot withstand a poisoned arrow flying

across battlements flying into the soft flesh

of the royal torso trained for every assault but this

whence the vengeance of Achilles Orestes to redeem

the sullied throne of their fathers to wrest from

Trojans the joy of victory in hand-to-hand combat

of the bloody justice men use to taunt tribal gods

Hubris brings us the thrill of conquest of discovery

in the bowels of our fear and trepidation suffering

does not faze us suffering does not wean us from

the vicissitudes of our wills fickle monitors of

the wonder of the human body and the imprisoned

soul yearning to fly into the heavens of the gods

there they are again the object of our pride the reason

for our quest for excellence we challenge them to purity

of heart we challenge them to this taste of immortality