Elise Skidmore

 
 I wonder how many people
 would have predicted
 they'd be where they are today;
 how many of the “Most likely to”s
 actually did.
 For those who did,
 was it hard work and persistence
 that paid off or
 was there a lot of luck involved?
 
 
 I'm sure the principle dancer
 at the New York City Ballet  
 must have had inborn talent  
 to accompany her dreams
 and hard work.
 She may have wanted to be a ballerina
 when she was little,  
 but without the right body type, balance,
 sense of rhythm and musicality
 all the classes and persistence in the world
 wouldn't have gotten her where she wanted to be.
 
 
 I doubt many people
 would have predicted they'd be
 hauling garbage away,
 driving a bus,
 packing boxes off a conveyor belt,
 mowing lawns,
 cleaning other people's houses,
 dancing around poles,
 cold calling strangers as they try
 to sell them things they don't want--
 or scam them into giving away their retirement.
 
 
 I wonder why it's so hard to be
 who we dream we can be
 and so easy to fall into the humdrum,
 prosaic and pedestrian lives we live.
 It's no surprise so many regret
 the things they have not done.
 
 
 ~Elise Skidmore ©2019