Writer Spotlight: Nathaniel D’Amato

The Unbeatable Foe

The insatiable being, 

the cyclical force that oversees my every move.  

You who waits for the prospect to strike. 

The behemoth lurking in the shadow,

why do you torment me so? 

No force can free me from the chains

you graciously placed upon my shoulders.

A fate sealed the instant your 

quietus gaze beheld 

 the neonate you. 

The pure vessel instantly tainted

as per the human condition,

forced to play the game which I call life. 

This game has no winner. 

There’s no winning here, 

for you have stacked the game against me.

Yet, though I know this, 

something unfathomable propels me forward,

makes me believe the game winnable,

but not here,

never here. 

My relentless foe, 

you who scoffs in wait, 

enjoying my futile struggle. 

For you are the dictator of this game,

and I am but a game piece, 

one stricken to the board of life, 

waiting for the certainty of being cleared,

waiting for you to empty it

and, with it, my legacy. 

But what happens then? 

Am I to travel the void aimlessly 

or to play the game once again? 

Won’t you tell me, my foe? 

For my torment, aren't I owed?