Winning isn't everything...

Sometimes, winning isn’t everything.
I should have been happy. I wasn’t.
I should have been thrilled. I wasn’t.
Instead, I felt only sorrow.

I felt as though I’d influenced time itself.
That I’d upset the apple cart.
My win had scuppered ambition.
Not mine; hers.

I felt as though I had influenced the future.
I wasn’t prepared to taste success.
To allow it to linger long enough to take shape.
I couldn’t live with what I’d done.

I gave it back. Gave her another chance.
She took it. She’s doing a good job.
She’s moved forward.
Perhaps taken it to the next level.

She stepped up, as I stepped down.
Poetic justice or divine intervention.
Now in her rightful place. Perhaps.
I don’t know. I don’t care.