The Burden of Dreams

A man with dreams, so bright and grand, Sought capital from a bank's cold hand. He borrowed much, with hope so high, Bet his house, beneath the sky. The bank’s burden, a weight unseen, He turned to cheer in a bar’s dim sheen. With borrowed funds, he drank his fill, A fleeting joy, but fate’s cruel thrill. A girl beside, with eyes that gleam, Whispered promises, a fleeting dream. To a motel’s room, they swiftly flew, In the haze of night, where shadows grew. Awoke alone, with dawn’s cruel light, The woman gone, without a fight. The motel's manager, demand so fierce, For payment due, his woes increase. In search of her, in clubs and bars, He faced only silence, under stars. Heavy labor to pay the cost, Of dreams now shattered, all but lost. A year of toil, his health declines, AIDS/HIV, the cruelest sign. From a fleeting touch, his life now frayed, A cautionary tale of debts unpaid. In shadows deep, where dreams collide, He pays the price, where hopes reside. A man who reached for dreams so high, Found only burdens beneath the sky.