stone

They give it up before it starts. They toss their loud words to the wind. They cast aside their futile dreams that meant the world just yesterday. They leave behind the life they lived. They bet it all upon the win and fool themselves with hope. They hurl their insults from the heart. They quit the drink to face the blade beneath the executioner's hand. They skip a stone across the water. They set their heavy burden down. They leave it all behind to walk away without a trace of guilt. I watch the circles spreading outward, the patterns on the water's face, all from the stone that skimmed the surface— the one you threw. (I watch the circles spreading outward, the patterns on the water's face, all from the stone that skimmed the surface— the one you threw.)