A year changes everything.
You can see it in his eyes;
Those guarded, smiling eyes,
Eyes which remember things
No child should
See.

And his surly, curling smile,
As closed as the lenses which
Flicker and snap
At his heels.

The nation weighs heavy on his shoulders,
And he feels it.
Occasionally he may forget,
In a moment of victory,
A perfect rally,
A stolen kiss.

Yet it remains; blessing and curse.
What drives him forward and claws him back,
And binds his thoughts
And gags his mouth.

He is becoming the man
They all need him to become.
The boy of summer is long gone,
And yet still there, if only you remember to look.
They watch him grow in paper and
Dirty ink,
In far flung places
He hunts down his far flung goals.
And they follow.

As clocks tick round,
And seasons change,
And the rest of the world sleeps,
They follow.