If I could still retreat
Even then I'd stay
And sound a last post
To signal
That I still salute the cause
Though it might be far too late
For victory
Remind me of my own mortality
I'll find some comfort there
If nowhere else

Impermanence is still a virtue
When things get too permanent
But I'm not interested
In anything past yesterday
And I'm on my knees
At this last
And most final
Defeat