Holding Court

Today I became King

of the Court w/out a diamond-

encrusted crown thrust upon

my sweaty head. Instead

my markings of royalty

were the t-shirt draping

my body like a robe soaked

in champagne & the pain

in my right knee — a sign

of a battle endured, my will

tested & bested by none

as the ball flew off my hands

as swift as an arrow toward

the heart of a target — my fingers

ringless yet feeling like gold.