Behind the Apotheosis

Behind the Apotheosis

For Misty Copeland

In the wings, she stood

Gazing at the empty stage

A spotlight beckoning for her to fill

With her heart, her fire, her journey

On her poised shoulders, she felt

The weight of her people

Of what she represented to them

Of whom she wanted to be herself

But pressure is a privilege, for it means 

What you are doing is vital

She knew this, which is why she bore

The dull, tender ache 

of a thousand tiny bone cracks

CanvaBallerina Soaring in the AirBorn from ten thousand grand jetés

When flesh meets floor

From pain she made beauty

Just breathe, she told herself

As she inhaled the familiar woodsy odor of rosin

And stale sweat 

In the wings, she heard them breathing

She knew the audience was more colorful

Every time she appeared

And that was why

She leapt on

The violins wailed and she surged out from black wings

Ballerina Dancing GracefullyCanvaHer grace slicing through the buzzing hush

Her body a paintbrush, she told her story

And with each stroke

A why, a how, a because

She was more than a dancer

She was a symbol of what could be, what should be, what is

Later that night, in her linoleum kitchen

as she peeled off 

CanvaBallerina en Pointeher bloody pointe shoes from her pulverized feet

She sighed

To others she was iconic

To herself, human

Of this is what

Heroes are made