Second Wind

my fifth grade
gym teacher

always talked about
a second wind

and we would sit
listening to him

explain how runners
called upon it

when their energy
was completely spent

when the muscles
in their legs

turned to cement
when their lungs

and chest
burned

from the lack
of breath

how a second wind
would rise up

from somewhere
within

and push them
forward

and across
the finish line

and although
we raced

across the
playground

trying
to induce it

in our
young bodies

we never
could

it was only later
that i learned

it was something
that had to be earned

through competition
and perseverance

and once earned
lasted forever

and knowing
that i could depend

on this second wind
this miraculous breath

to provide me
with the endurance

to complete each day
and be ready

for the next
has made all the difference