When A Hero Is Flesh And Blood

Something that came to me while hearing the song "Love Is Only Human" by Pam Tillis and Marty Roe

   

My natural instinct was to

Rush to your side

Riding in on my white horse

To save your life.

 

A knight in shining armor

Was all you saw

Caught in a dramatic experience

Caused us to fall.

 

Unfortunately the hands of time

Are not a hero’s friend

Exposing the obvious truth

We are human too.

 

The disappointment began as I

Dismounted from my horse

No longer did you look up at me

Like I was larger than life.

 

Then you lost all faith

The day you saw my armor pierced

Forcing you to realize

That I am flesh and blood.

 

Now that I stand against the world

From many misunderstandings

Suddenly I find myself all alone

As you slip back into the shadows.

 

When your illusion fell from grace

So did your feelings for me

For when I was your hero

I was everything

But as a man

I became nothing.

Reviews

[Kelly D. Burris]

Beautifully written. You feel the heartache in it. When we find out that the way some people look at us is not as we are, but in their fantasy's they fit us into, it's hurtful. The whole time it's just them trying to fit us into the puzzle they have. Don't take it as rejection tho. It's just sad they can't really look to see people for who they truly are but more absorbed in pleasing themselves. A lot of times it's out of pain that they do it to begin with.
Very exposing and vulnerable piece.
Kelly

[Brette Medb]

This piece is heartwrenching! If there is anything in this world that is true is that we are all mortal and age and make mistakes and sometimes fail at what we do. The strength is not physical but how we age. There are those who at the first sign of age run to anything and everything that will make them appear younger but the true strength and courage is to age gracefully accepting what we are and moving on and becoming wiser with each and every experience put before us and accepting the challenges life throws at us. Beautifully sad piece.



Brette

[Hannah!]

I love those last four lines "For when I was your hero/I was everything/But as a man/I became nothing." The whole poem obviously has that sorrowful tone, but those last lines sort of linger and resonate. I've read about the people who have heroes recognizing that the hero in question is merely flesh and blood, but this is the first time that I've read such a thing from a hero's perspective.

Suffice it to say, this is a really cool poem.

[Vatsayayana]

Hauntingly sorrowful.
Why is it that when our heroes are perceived as men and women, they lose their hero status?
It's actually that flesh and blood that encompasses the package, encompasses the soul.
That blood is the history of that person, what they are, where they came from.
It is that blood that bled so freely when an individual was hurt. It was that blood that bled to save the soul of that person. To erase their pains, their sorrows.
It is that blood that tells the story, that flesh that signifies each battle won and lost. The history of that hero.
I guess this is why I treasure scars. Their rolling pain, their fleshy pink rises, their lightning jaggedness. Each trace, dip, curve is part of that person, that hero's story.
While I am saddened by the tale, I still smile that there are still heroes.
Heroes that bleed, heroes that stand.
Heroes with flesh.

[Brianna Brie]

What a fabulous metaphor for the subject at hand. This doesn't stop short of a masterpiece. Written well with such a strong message. Loved this one.

[Jane Doe]

I really enjoyed this piece. It is hard to truly love someone when we put them on a pedestal as we can't truly know them when they are so high above us. We become disillusioned when we realize that person is not perfect. This is a wonderful poem, great writing!

[Victoria Lee~]

This is very well written. I loved the last stanza. It is hard to live up to someone else's idea of who they think you are and who they want you to be.

[Erotic Goddess]

Then you lost all faith
The day you saw my armor pierced
Forcing you to realize
That I am flesh and blood.

This is beautiful, I love it. There is something sweet and poignant and sad about this piece and it is really nice. I am glad that I got a chance to read this! :)

xxoxx
Stephanie

[desertraven]

well written piece. It has all of the elements needed, perfection.
Sandra

[SM Davis]

Unfortunately the hands of time
Are not a hero's friend
Exposing the obvious truth
We are human too.

It is so very hard when our heroes fall off of their pedestals. However, it is also a breathtaking moment. It's when we realize that the one we admire so, has so much more than we ever thought because not only are they worthy of our admiration, but they are more so because they showed us a fearless humanity. When our fears are dispelled ... and we are able to show our flaws and recognize them as being a part of who we are...that's where freedom truly rings.

[Gary H]

Yeah, guess we are all mortal. There are times when we can wear shining armour and become heroes but these times never last forever. It's better to show our true selves naked and vulnerable. At least that way there is no sense of pretence. After all, we are what we are and can't change that.
Nice idea and well thought out.