Sunday, August 4, 2013

When It’s Time to Pretend What’s Real


When It’s Time to Pretend What’s Real


Seabiscuit

I’m stepping back,
unhitching the latch,
walking through the gate,
saunterng into the pasture
where you, Seabiscuit,
are spending your final years.
Here, my vicarious entry
to a realm
of claimed greatness.
The grass green and thick,
your body firm and stately
as I knew it would be.
Our eyes meet
as if you know me
with your nod 
beckoning me to stroke
your magnificent forehead.
And yes, you’re small
holding that big heart.
You lived the underdog,
returned from hopeless injury
to name your victory,
became lead money-winner 
of all-time.
My, you were eccentric--
sleeping all those
non-athletic hours,
your need for Pumpkin-- 
stall-mate to calm you;
perhaps, too, the inspiration,
despite your slight frame,
for your outsized appetite.
O, your felicity to behold
with your owner, trainer,
jockey and adoring crowds,
primping proudly as you
pranced before the race.
You, Biscuit, the original, gave.
We, the fortunate, received.
You got more ink
than Hitler or Roosevelt
and died when I was nine,
buried where no one knows.






To Ponder

            1.   There are times in all our lives when some strong desire
                  can be met only through fantasy. 

            2.   As a child I heard adults speak of Seabiscuit in awe. I just
                  thought he had a catchy name.

            3.   Then in 2001 Laura Hillenbrand wrote her dazzling
                  monster seller with simply his name as its title.

            4.   I, a slow reader, swallowed it up in two days, wonderfully akin to its
                  central characters.

            5.   Always an energized sports enthusiast, I learned, too, that the jockey is
                  probably the greatest athlete in all sport.

            6.   I loved this horse of the pages---his championship heart,
                  his overcoming adversity, even his vain personality.

            7.   Only through fantasy—my imagination---did I meet him
                  and make him my friend and ongoing inspiration.



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Visit us here for a fresh quote from leading thinkers every Monday, Wednesday and Friday--designed to enhance your life. On Sunday mornings we go a bit deeper with our weekly message--intended to add vitality and enduring inner peace to the life of the contemplative reader. In a word, that’s grounding. Open a team meeting or family meal with a thought you’ve picked up here and see what happens.


© 2013 Allan Cox, Allan Cox & Associates Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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If you enjoy reading this story, you may wish to order WHOA! Are They Glad You’re in Their lives? available on Amazon Kindle and in print edition too. 



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