The Gristmill, Life
Ah, the "daily grind" ...
spin, spin, the big stone wheels,
the weighty rollers of life trundle on, inexorable ...
the intense churn of actuality cares not what finds its press -
Grain or chaff, peril or promise, all at its mercy.
But the painful grind is necessary ... crucial, even.
The crushing weight of verity, growth and wisdom,
creates a process as elemental as breath itself.
The fruitful heart is often hidden ...
within shells of bad habit, error, affectation, and pretense,
so the glorious honesty of a spirit, often bears a hard exterior.
Society and happenstance create phony skins ...
Brittle but strong husks of falsehood that we hide behind,
that we tend to use incorrectly as tools of ease and deflection.
Only through the braying of truth and reality
is the resistant and distorted hull broken down ...
And the wealth and bounty inside, set free.
Yes, the daily grind is real ... and not to be taken lightly,
but it is, as life itself ...
our brutal and beautiful blessing.
~ 4th Place ~ in "The Gristmill" Poetry Contest, Craig Cornish, Sponsor.
~ 2nd Place ~ in the "June 2018 Standard Any Form" Poetry Contest, Brian Strand, Sponsor.
Copyright ©
Gregory Richard Barden
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