on the inside line

I attack on the inside line. If I am
countered, it is because

my opponent
has demonstrated presence
of mind:

present, embodied in a unity
of thought and form,
mindful of purpose,
but unmindful
of intent - a body,
a motion unwilled,
catch and redirect,
undirected,
explosive and instantaneous
proceeding from stillness.

and I am blocked. When I am blocked,
I do not react in the moment,
but in the moment before

In this way, I may have already won the fight.

A fight is an earnest conversation
between two whose love for each other
is marred only by their imperfection
in being able to perfectly express it,
we are perfect in mind but unable
to perfectly connect every time - meaning
turned aside, rolled away from, dodged,
ducked - persistence
is the key

to making one's meaning connect.
persistence, and the willingness to accept
that one's own circle
may ultimately be the one
that collapses