busyThis poem is from the August 2012 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by a prompt from 
siliconshaman. It has been sponsored by the general fund.
The heroes of old have gone
to take their place on Olympus,
wearing the mantle of divinity
and reaching down from on high
to meddle in the lives of mortals
chosen to become heroes anew.
Hercules selects his champion
and pushes her forward.
She is built like a bull,
all back and shoulders
and big burly arms.
She can lift over 568 pounds.
The shadow of Atalanta
follows her champion to the track.
His long muscles ripple
as he paces the lane
in his carbon-fiber feet,
swift and fierce as a cheetah.
Long forgotten and nameless,
the Minoan bull-dancer chalks her palms
and sends out her champion with a firm pat.
"Don't worry, sugar," she says
to the gymnast tumbling through the gilded air,
"they didn't like my outfit either."
* * *
The three athletes alluded to are Sarah Robles, Oscar Pistorius, and Gabby Douglas.
