Draft in the author’s style. This poem was written for Poet of Uplift to sit beside the author’s own readings, and is waiting for the author’s review. The commentary is a working draft too.
They wrote me off in January, when the season slipped away,
With a record that was shattered and a team in disarray.
The papers called us hopeless, and the crowds began to leave,
And the coach sat down beside us, and he did not let us grieve.
He said, the past is over, and the future's still to write,
So let us train through daybreak and we'll fight it through the night.
We ran the hills at sunrise, and we trained in rain and snow,
And we learned that every setback is a seed that helps us grow.
By June we won the final in a shower of confetti,
And the crowds who'd left in January cheered us, loud and ready.
So if they've written you off, my friend, remember what I say,
That the best of all the stories is the comeback of the day.
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Commentary
Everyone loves a comeback because everyone has felt written off. This poem follows a team from January’s failure to June’s cheer.
“They wrote me off in January, when the season slipped away,” with “a team in disarray.” “The papers called us hopeless, and the crowds began to leave.” The coach says, “the past is over, and the future’s still to write.” The team runs “the hills at sunrise” and trains “in rain and snow.”
They learn that “every setback is a seed that helps us grow.” “By June we won the final in a shower of confetti,” and “the crowds who’d left in January cheered us.” The poem ends, “the best of all the stories is the comeback of the day.”