the life of push and pull

lately i have sweat
so much that when
the cool water runs

down in the shower
and i push away
soap bubbles
i can feel
the sinew
every
muscle
every tightly stretched
pain
and i
do not look like
atlas
as a result
nor have i ever
or could i ever

having been born with
inferior genes

only a certain
small percentage
of the human kind

(not this kind)
is actually born
physical hero
yet i have
adopted
the life of
push and pull
bear and drag

mattresses
firewood
pumpkins
and christmas
trees
and i remember being
self medicated
usually
as a result

most
of those times
now its kayaks
spare tires
and the weight
of the glimpse of that
other side

see
i was born
to the average build
of a
night schooled
engineer father
skinny irish and
english stock
my mother
scots black irish
and hers from jamestown
1636
small as well
but efficient
and smart
bred and raised
to survive in a
tumultuous and
cash poor time

we have had it easy

i should have been
a politician
a biologist or
a lawyer
instead of this toiling

pushing this
slightly more curved than normal
less healthy than normal
spine
behind a fools plow

but i do
and
i
gain these
perspectives
to one day
sell to you
for pennies on
the dollar
until time
recognizes
the wisdom
of the fool