Challenging Poetry

on completing a goal

I started riding my dragon
so many years ago
that all I remember
is his fire, his scales, his wings
catching the air
and lifting me up or plummeting
—until I can barely breathe in the rush
to write it all.

we are a pair—
me defining our destination,
my dragon bathing my heels in fire—
so that I rush to it,
finding that the horizon I saw
when I started, has another horizon
beyond that.

there is no ending.
no time to put down my pen,
lay me down,
and sleep.
not when there are new paths
to explore, new treasures to horde,
new words to write.

When I started writing this, I was trying to think about endings. I've had a major ending this month--my thesis is defended, my comps are finished, my paperwork is in, my thesis has gone through a last spot check by the graduate school and they should approve it for electronic distribution, soon. But as I thought about that, I immediately started thinking about the next step, the next goal. I rarely give myself time to stop and appreciate something finished. I always want to be working towards something else, something new. So, that's where this one came from.