Graham Denton - I Am Huffing, I Am Puffing

I Am Huffing, I Am Puffing
by
Graham Denton

I am huffing, I am puffing
I can barely catch my breath,
I feel perilously perched upon
the verge of certain death,
I am absolutely shattered,
I am positively bushed,
I have pushed myself much further
than a human should be pushed.

I feel fit for next to nothing,
I am almost on the deck,
I’m devoid of any vigour,
I am virtually a wreck,
all my muscles are complaining,
and my legs are lumps of lead,
there’s a knot inside my stomach,
I’ve an aching in my head.

I can hardly move an eyelid,
I’ve got nothing left to give,
I have reached the utter limits,
I have lost my will to live,
this is when the coach announces
– as he primes his starting gun –
“Right, you lot, the warm-up’s over…
now it’s time to start your run!”

© Graham Denton. All rights reserved.

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I'm a sucker for sports poems and a sucker for funny poems, so when you combine the two, as Graham Denton has done here, I get downright giddy. To think he's collected a book of such poems, When Granny Won Olympic Gold (due out in August), makes me very happy indeed.

I, of course, don't recognize myself in the above poem AT ALL. No. But even so, I can totally feel the mental and physical state of the narrator, a true testament to the power of poetry. Frankly, I'd go on more, but I'm exhausted from all this typing! Still, I'm not too tired to say how happy I am to have Graham Denton back here again at 30 Poets/30 Days. (Oh, and don't forget to check out Graham's last contribution here, Sounds Delightful.)

Yesterday gave us Dear Whoever Composes the Sky by April Halprin Wayland. Tomorrow... George Ella Lyon and No Need For Metaphor.  For more information on 30 Poets/30 Days and how to follow along, please click here.