Eisenhower woke each morning, with the weight of continents balanced between his shoulder blades The invasion of Normandy, successfully liberating Western Europe from the Germans had 130,000 casualties 29,000 killed Maps spread b4 him like morgues Laid out in neat little rectangles Every arrow a vein Every arrow a prediction of blood Every circle a pulse Every landing zone a pre dug grave Every decision a door way thru which 1000’s no 10’s of 1000’s, not metaphorically literally would live or not live depending on the angle of his breathe, the smallest twitch of his judgement Men waited for his signature The way prisoners wait for a final verdict 10 thousands more waited in silence For him to decide which direction death would travel Win or lose his decisions either way held death The weight of the world roared like thunder He lived with ghosts b4 they were dead Each day knowing his choices would carve names in stone Ike sat in rooms where the air could not breathe Life, the world, gave him no time it handed him ultimatums Choices, futures that dangled like meat over a pit Waiting for his knife to choose the direction of suffering (who would be eaten digested turned into mud never to be seen again) He made decisions over a trembling world No applause No self pity Simple grim arithmetic of leadership Written, felt, across his spine He bore the world and it pushed back The weight of history crouched in a corner Quiet and hungry watching what he’d choose He wasn’t surrounded by an army he was surrounded by corpses Uniforms stitched from futures that might not exist Loneliness was not a feeling, it was the architecture of the job A throne carved in dread A kingdom of men to be sacrificed The world pressed a cold mouth to the back of his neck It whispered every choice he had to choose Surrounded by generals - he stood completely alone None to offer input on the casualties to create Every one stands and stares pretends the room is not vibrating with existential despair