Am I He ?

Reviewing the list of accusations
So cruel and abusive
I don’t recognize the man
against whom these are made.

Yet
it is me.
I am that unrecognizable man.

How is it ?
How does a life lived
duty, service, honor
become unrecognizable?

Am I he ?
Am I that man ?

If the words are used
does it matter that they are lies ?
That I am not that man ?

Yes, Marcus Aurelius would say.
I struggle to believe so.

————–
2017
Unmoored