For Kerri and April

A cacophony of cheers Sand sprays like fireworks From feet, hands, ball, hair. Four women, two-a-side, In a battle for the ages. A motion of fluidity and a Knowledge brought forth From years in the fray. Sun, rain, the elements, Just more adversaries In a long procession of Combatants put asunder By their clear dominance Of a gritty game of volleys. The Americans had few Times met with struggle Along their long journey Toward the gilded yellow Badge of Olympic honor, But this night the glint in The eye, the coordinate Movements of limbs and Lengths and deliberations, The perfection of intents And wiles and exertions, Would not birth triumph, But instead place a bitter Pill flat on their tongues. But such is the bare truth Of warfare, and such is The coming of wisdom ... For without that sour taste And constricting swallow, We have no estimation Of the finer, sweeter things That the battlements of Life hold within their walls. Gold knows no favorite, Nor does it gleam in the Eyes of the fortunate only. Momentum true is the key And this night it flowed For the sake of those Whose feet knew this Beach as their own ... Who felt their home and Peoples and affinities all In the grainy coursing of Cold granules underfoot, And sometimes, when The heart has the peace Of its OWN around it, that's All the difference needed. But character outshines The most precious ores, And in that bold and true Respect, our wonderfully Beautiful and courageous Girls of Stars and Stripes, Shall ALWAYS stand at The top of the podium, And the anthem of our Appreciation and pride Will always play in their Ears ... We love you, Kerri Walsh Jennings and April Ross, and you are, without Question or argument, The very BEST.