“Relief in Stone” by Daniel Johnson

Sisyphus starts in surprise as

I join him in his struggle,

A second pair of hands on a hated rock.

Disbelieving eyes look to me,

Dusty lips form only, “why?”

“You will never reach the top, friend.”

Sisyphus shakes his head stubbornly,

“But if I can only push a bit further-”

We push the hated rock a bit further.

“There will always be a bit further.”

The eyes of Sisyphus are quietly bleak,

Dark with the truth he’d tried to ignore.

“Why then, should I push at all?”

He crumples to the ground,

A body broken in pain and defeat.

“My friend, you will never reach the top,

So keep your eyes on your hands instead.”

I reach out to him, solid as stone.

And you will know relief after every step,

If you let my hands prop you up.”

Sisyphus rises, slow but strong.

We push the great rock.

Daniel Johnson keeps losing his socks, his M-card, and his words. So when he has them, he has to make sure he uses them well.