Incarnate

Pass once by the wheel of fate
It spins, it turns to what end we dare not ­contemplate
The center unfolds, past futures revealed
A queen, a beggar, a soldier, a child exposed

Royalty, riches, an empire that kneels to needless whim
Power stemmed by responsibility as bright eyes dim
Forget mortality, memories dull
Gold turns to copper, silver to nickel, a beggar is reborn

Garbage king, coarse black hands in tattered clothes
Trenches drawn inch deep, leading trails down to sanguine toes
Forget troubles, expired bodies are not meant to keep
The slate is scraped clean until war calls

Tall sons stride to arms to war
Heaven's eye watches as crimson drips upon the northern star
Forget pain, sleep untroubled woes away
Lay forfeit lives which are henceforth ­commanded by glory and duty

We're six years young, old habits must be ­relearned
Arithmetic, writing, grades re-earned
Forget people, souls cycle but nothing stays the same
The mind is fresh and greedy but our souls have worn ancient in their shells

Mortality holds us hostage
Death nips the heels of life, forcing us captive in a pent-up cage
We stare into the wheel of fate, reincarnations born blind anew to each world we enter
A queen, a beggar, a soldier, a child and …