rocket power serve
up the T on the deuce side
~ point of no return




Mark Toney © 2021

It’s a beautiful game of back and forth,
showing me life is merely a game too,
winning or losing may have me trying,
so long as you have fun on the court, playing!

On occasions, I couldn’t get through you,
could you lower yourself for me,
Or are you asking
to raise the game within me?

Serving me a volley of ups and downs,
making me come to the net,
playing it on the rise,
taking risk down the line,
but, alas, life doesn’t give you an HawkEye.

Opponents may be many,
courts may be different,
conditions may be new,
keep that passion within you,
for you never know when the match point is on you.

Is one type of friendship
people cooperating
to facilitate each other’s
joy and happiness?
Like friends
who play tennis together:
Tennis-Friends?
Like friends
who help each other study:
Study-friends?

The yellow ball soars through the air
From whence it came I do not care
And with a great, tremendous whack
I send it soaring, soaring back

15 to love, still able to win,
gotta tough it out,
winning is everything. Losing's a sin.
I'll keep trying. I'm still in with a shout.

My backhand slices
the ball to my foe
(Joe's my friend but in a crisis,
I shift where the winds blow)

He parries, sends the ball to the line,
his touch is immaculate,
cleaner than mine.
I leap like a cat

return it with ease
he flicks it back over the net
intending to tease.
I grimace. We made a bet

and now I engage
into higher gear,
my brain fills with rage,
my heart fills with fear.

Advantage to me,
the crowd stands to cheer,
Joe falls to one knee,
buckled, losing a tear.

I volley. It whizzers
past his frozen form
he tries, but misses,
defeated, forelorn.

At last I have won,
the gold cup is mine,
another dream spun,
back to the factory line.

part, the first; serve

           a good conversation is like a good game of tennis,
(with no winner) the ball drunkenly goes from side to side.

           coffee shop, asking to pass the sugar,
the serve is delicate and precise, making it is key.

           acceptance with the splenda is passed along with ‘sure’,
the receiver must lose their name, anticipate the arrival

           following up with such a statement, a vocational inquiry
title lost, the ball has been struck and thrown as response.

                                 part, the second; dance

the game has truly begun;
                      the beginning is not the serve,
           but the response to.

back and forth in endless banter,
                      meaningless question,
           to meaningless answer.

secretly, both don’t want the volley to end;
                      not often does the
           passing sugar trick work.

                                 part, the third; point

a fatal slip- achilles heel:
remembrance. no appointment is worth
           losing a point, even
one for a prostate check (despite common opinion)

good thing then; the score
does not go to a single point, it requires
           four or so completions,
though by four they will not count score

(and will drop the rackets).

You
with yourself
put sparkles
in my ground;
and unearthed with ease
when you come around.