You can’t waylay
in the thick of an ongoing heist
upon yourself.
She had prayed for my ability to duck death
in its full bloom,
father, a fighter himself
would spar as if
there were ropes around us.
I would give up early from breathlessness.
Last time when I was actually
put on oxygen support
I understood what fighting
for life meant
and what it took to cheat death.
If I undergo a couple of more
bouts and manage to carry full on
to the last round,
they’ll remember me as a prize fighter
whose gloves got hung.
