Notch in the Fence Post

A notch in the fence post may have more meaning to some; for they received ribbons for games they had won.
Ribbons were stowed in boxes or framed.
Achievement was given and admiration was named.
Yet those who were excluded from this; game of chance perhaps was missed.
But achievement brings pride and helps us grow.
One more notch is another goal.
Although sitting upon the sidelines to wait; ribbons achieved may come to late.
Rewards and statues and plaques gather dust.
A tangle of illusion brings a loss of trust.
For limbs that used to cross the finish line; struggle to witness the state of fine.
Arms can no longer bend as before; lucky to open a can or a door.
Yet there upon the shelf remains, ribbons as proof of hard-won games.
Perhaps a ribbon should be given each day, a notch in the post that achievement was made.
Whether big and tall, or short and small; winning is a streak for all.
We all have battles and silent demons.
Reaching the finish line gives us more reasons.
Perhaps it may take an extra day or two, but as you cross the line, I believe in you.
There isn’t a line drawn in the sand; you will achieve a life of grand.
No one else can possibly know the struggle it took to reach the goal.
You alone remember the sweat; looking back without regret.
Wave goodbye to every ghost as you put a notch in your very own post.