Warrior

Warrior.

It is my current word of choice, my current theme, if you will, for life, and the people, warriors, I have met or know.

The American Heritage dictionary has two definitions for 'warrior.' The first is "one who is engaged in or experienced in battle." Google says "a brave or experienced soldier or fighter." Basically, a warrior fights battles. The second definition encompasses a wider spectrum: "One who is engaged aggressively or energetically in an activity, cause, or conflict." These definitions fit well. Many of us know a warrior or two.

My last few poems that I have written have had the word 'warrior' in them. The first was for a seventeen year old student fighting cancer. It has been an ongoing battle. Katie, the Warrior, was written back in the spring. She is doing well and currently cancer free.

 Another young woman had battled an illness and was waiting to be cleared to go swim in a lake. In mid-July, her wish was granted. I sent her Jump in the Lake.

In between those two events, I was thinking about all the things that young people face today. I know I was not concerned with as much when I was in high school; it could have been because there was less to deal with or because I was just clueless. Either way, The Warrior, is the third poem that I tapped out at my keyboard.

Looking back, I should have used "warrior" for the verse I added for Duane in Helmet to the Stone, a high school classmate who died from cancer this summer.

And warrior theme continues. I was binge watching America's Got Talent recap of Golden Tickets for 2018, and one young lady did a cover to Demi Lovato's "Warrior." Great song, great performance.

And if I'm going to touch on rock and roll songs and the warrior theme, I cannot leave out the classic Pat Benatar's "I am the Warrior." Always loved that song.

Warrior carries connotations of not giving up, passionate beliefs, and strength. And as shown above does not have to be a soldier in a war. It is much bigger. It is a human "energetically" facing challenges and making the world a better place.

Yes. Simply put, the word is "warrior."

Reboot of Tarzan

Yes, this is a reboot and redesign of a blog I had originally named Tarzan: Surviving the 21st Century Jungle. I had a subtitle of "half naked and out on a limb." Although the title has changed to be a little more universal, the concept is the same.

It is a jungle out there. It is complex out there. As written for Tarzan, "The jungle we are in includes relationships, home repair, movies, family (wife and kids), work and whatever other denizens of the jungle lurk about." So, jungle is a good symbol for a complex world.

Tarzan, however, is not a good symbol for Sura. I am not some muscular lord of the jungle that can swing on vines easily and save people from the lions. I say this good-humorously, poking fun at my somewhat older self. (Note last post titel 'High Five Fifty'. This post could have been 'Fifty-five done hit me.') That being said, maybe I am a little wiser. Maybe I will be able to offer more insights.

Just to flashback on why I considered Tarzan as a title. Being a fan, "I have concluded that he is a good role model. Tarzan was a renaissance man who could read, write and speak well and could hunt, track and live in the jungle. He was a naturalist, environmentalist, philosopher, and lord of two worlds. He understood danger, family, code, honor, right and wrong, nature, man, good and bad, power, humility and nobility."

So, maybe that should be something of a mission statement. But let's add words like together, sharing, and humor. I think that will up our survivability rate.

So let's see where this adventure in writing takes us.