the message wasn’t heard
there was an air of defiance
in the blank stare
leaving a past
that felt like boulders
blocking each & every positive conclusion
looking beyond the present
for it seemed frozen in time
the air did not breathe
and neither did they
for a breath
would let one feel
a breath
would make it real

an argument
cast in stone

one stood
rock solid
with a boldness
reeking of righteousness

one sat
stalwart
with a confidence
of committed clarity

no one was going to bend
no one was going to soften

no foreseeable outcome
an unsettling future
that perhaps only
an earthquake could crack
fracturing the surface
revealing a solution
in the midst of the debris

no one was going to bend
no one was going to soften