Bill Keen Poet Dramatic Monologue

Eagles Fly, Bears Growl

Failure is with us every day
			telling us to go for it on fourth and one;			
			more and more that’s done;
			we listen to failure smiling cynically
			as he whispers temptations in our ears.
			You’d recognize the guy,
			You’ve seen him lingering near,
			first cousin to Mayhem on TV,
			there’s a strong family resemblance. 

			But forewarnings don’t enhance
			self-protective good sense
			for the lot of us hooked on football games
			as we urge our favorites on							 		  
			to one more squeeky win                                                   
                        as the clock runs down to zero zed.                                   
                        It’s just the same with soccer fans.

			C’mon man! What more do you need
			to recognize Failure’s hold?
			You saw the game: that field goal
			that hit the pole and then bounced off
			the crossbar inches short of a score
			was Failure giving us, all of us, the finger.
			So now you’re an Eagle fan? 										 
                        Take heed, man, Failure will linger.
			Can downed Eagles hibernate? Bears can!

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CayCay Godwin March 9, 2026 at 4:10 PM Thought I'd check out your first post. Here I find my dad and bro, here watching football. Sports was the background sound of my young life. Baseball, basketball, & football the main 3. I thought about Sonny Jergensen a lot today. I'm sure he's the reason Dad became the die-hard Redskin fan he was. They haven't shone in so long, even with the new name. I have sat in the Dallas stadium cheering on the 'Skins, dangerous that. I love your poem, thanks for bringing so much love to me with this.

Caren Krutsinger January 13, 2019 at 2:41 PM William, I know nothing about football, but I can tell that you do. The writing of the poem is really good, and moves along quickly. I want to give you a warm welcome to Poetry Soup.