Their writing often explores themes of introspection, love, loss, and resilience

The Sword and the Stern

A Poem by Rayne LaDuex

I have walked beneath the hanging blade,
the sword of Damocles,
its edge catching the light like a question
I’ve never had the courage to answer.

And I have sailed aboard the Ship of Theseus,
every plank weathered, every nail rusted out and replaced,
piece by piece,
until not a single part remains from the ship that first left shore.
But it still bears the name.
It still dares the waves.

So tell me—
what is the measure of a man?
Is it the weight of the sword above his head,
or the shape of the vessel he steers through the storm?

I’ve worn this body like a hull,
patched and sanded down,
refitted where life broke me open.
This heart—
it is not the same heart that first set sail.
This mind—
it has forgotten the shape of its original thoughts.

And yet, I move forward,
a ship with no original pieces,
a man with no unbroken parts.

Is this fear, or is this freedom?
Is the sword the threat, or the reminder
that the feast is fleeting
and the thread that holds us is thin as breath?

See, Damocles dined beneath the promise of power’s price,
and Theseus sailed toward the horizon knowing
that identity isn’t anchored in what was—
but in what remains.

I am both.
I am the feast and the famine,
the sword and the stern,
the question that keeps cutting
and the vessel that keeps floating,
even when the sea claws at my seams.

And if the sword should fall,
if the thread frays and snaps like every promise I’ve made to myself,
I will gather what I can from the wreckage,
I will strip down what’s left,
I will rebuild.

Because I have learned—
we are never whole,
we are never original,
we are the sum of what we’ve survived.

We are ships made new
by the storms we’ve weathered,
and we sail on.

So let the sword hang.
Let the waves rise.
I have become both the weight
and the will to carry it.

I am the ship.
I am the sea.
I am the sword.
I am the thread.

And still, I sail.

Rayne LaDuex is a passionate writer of poetry and short stories that delve into the raw and often unspoken facets of human experience. Drawing inspiration from the quiet moments of life and the intricate emotions that weave our stories, LaDuex creates work that is both deeply personal and universally resonant. Their writing often explores themes of introspection, love, loss, and resilience.

In addition to writing, LaDuex balances creativity with a career in project management and serves their community as a high school football coach, helping to mentor and inspire the next generation. They find harmony between structure and imagination, weaving these experiences into their art. Silence is their debut collection, a heartfelt offering to those who find solace in words and the spaces between them.

Order Silence here.

#Poetry, #Resilience, #Introspection, #RayneLaDuex, #TheSwordAndTheStern, #ShipOfTheseus, #Damocles, #PersonalGrowth, #Identity, #StewardshipReport

TAGS: poetry, resilience, introspection, Rayne LaDuex, The Sword and the Stern, Ship of Theseus, Damocles, personal growth, identity, The Stewardship Report