The Burdened Bear

A five-paragraph piece of prose styled in a modified iambic pentameter.
September 18, 2009

The Burdened Bear

Lov’ed souls connect by destiny’s hand,
As a lily who to fore’er bloom she dared.
Yet lady fate had all along planned,
For her to wither with an Autumn prayer.

O Life’s winding path, erratic but true,
Like a rosethorn since dulled by tepid air;
Or fire of love frozen o’er to blue,
Doth old hearts be wracked by a mem’ry’s affair.

And when mere mortals dare a man thus scorned
(Who by their fear dissuade God-given dreams)
Might rather beckon Earth to stop her turn,
O’er by thread and point sew Etna in seams.

Doubters, who all but claim “cannot” and “can,”
Too oft forget the Will and Heart of Man.

This burden is for one alone to bear,
And a bear does not complain.
But to hibernate in the hist’ry books,
The bear without a name.

About the Author

Dave Ursillo is a professional life and career coach, multi-published author, writing teacher, and future mental health counselor. He has coached over 300 professional helpers since 2012, spoken and taught workshops on 4 continents, and turned more than two dozen writers into first-time authors. His words and work have been featured on Creative Live, Psychology Today, Forbes, INC, The Hindustan Times, and beyond.

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