Arena

A Poem by Femi Adejuwon

I am gone into the fields
To ply my solemn trade
In forests made of steel
Men such as I are made

And broken. We were wrought
In fire, we were schooled
"Let Glory be your lust"
And lusting, we were fuelled

Here I was made to dance
"Forsake both bone and joint"
Body became as blade
And hand, the sharpened point

Many fell where I stand now
Engarbed in cloth and bronze
The school unsees all failure
Disowns her fallen sons

But for those left, the glory!
We climb from fire to fame
And with my foe's anointing
All greece shall know my name

A stab of icy iron
A block with battered shield
A lunge with grisly purpose
Strike and water the field

The fires here burn brighter
By stealing yet more flame
This man was my sword-brother
Now, only I remain...

It is a deadly beauty
The baptism of blood
The fates lay hold of man
And spin him into god

A higher form of life
A finer sense of all
The wills of two will clash
The will of one will fall...