THE BOUNCE

The boy is the game,

Basketball, its name.

It’s sometimes a bouncing toy,

And oft that bounce is the boy.

Learned at his school, church or on the road,

Poverty often being his accompanying load.

Still he’d practice, practice, practice, and then do it again.

He could deke to the right or left, swivel, fake, and feign.

Practice lay-ups and long shots mostly until he lost the sun’s light,

Play for his school where he was coached and taught to play right.

Moved on to college, perfected his game and then went pro.

Ended ten years in the NBA when his knees were a no-show.

And now the rest of the boy’s story is

That when he became a star and whiz,

His poverty ended and his wealth in turn did increase,

But was that worth the loss of the bounce in his knees?

Comment:

This bounce of life was part of the boy’s leap into his being and living,

Embraced by him with much hope that in the end was self-deceiving.

For, as he too enthusiastically sought material wealth,

He became an accomplice to wrecking his own health.