I'm considering the purchase of a vowel, after which I may have adequete means to solve the puzzle.

I lace up running shoes from eighth grade track
I stole them from their practice a few weeks back
they're a bit tight
but then again I'm a bit old for them
they're a bit old
and I'm not exactly fresh meat either
I used to do this a lot, you know
legs blurred against foliage
shirtless in October
(and not embarassed)
feeling like one of the guys
working hard to keep up
working hard to be in last place
but an honorable last place it was!
I had my complaints
and I most certainly still do
as I feel the splints affixing themselves
to my shins
and my hamstrings are pulled out of tune
I'm climbing a hill I used to easily conquer
and I'm stumbling on a path that used to find me surefooted
Images from that time bring invisible lines
drawn from polaroid to person
to person to moment
off time when I felt whole
when I felt like I was moving towards that goal
those fleeting moments are back
with my creative endeavors
with my ideas
with the means to bring them to fruition
speaking of trees
says the witty narration
that springs out of my mind
for special occasions
as I am cut by a branch
as I run through the woods
which is where I find myself often I find
peace in the sunlight
unrest in the shade
my past in roots uprooted
and trampled, worn down blades
tall grass that brushes against my legs
that still burn and ache and scream for rest
but I am still running
because I don't have answers
to all of the questions that I continue to write on scraps of paper
and type with my keyboard
on a computer i have yet to make use of!
I am waiting for what?
A B C or D
I know what I want
F or T F or T
and at last
for extra credit, mind you
Who and how do I love
a short essay question
the narration comes back, making some joke about
looking out below
and i trip and fall
and i stay put
and my lip is bleeding, as it so often does
and the blood mingles with words
that feel foreign in my mouth
It's not the question
It's not the answer
It's the drive to understand
and as I stand up
as I cough up the sand
I feel like a new person
and i remember why I used to run
to feel like i was running towards something
and I am
always
I am.