#3 When Spider-man opens his eyes

When I wake in the morning, I roll over

and gaze into the sunny eyes

of my magazine-cover girlfriend.

I don't feel much of a hero any more,

more like a normal man.

Sure, I face my daily dilemma, the undisputed 

morality of a vigilant observer,

engaging a life of great responsibility,

envying everyone else.

I will kiss her on the cheek 

and step to the window.

The urban landscape is

strung out before me like

the beads of a rosary

and my nightly wanderings

are the most earnest prayers.

I find freedom in the fight, 

I awaken my mind

to the nearest criminal 

activity and the desperate pain

of a forty-foot

fall. These things

give me gratitude

for life in all its forms-

my girl's eyes,

her morning breath

and the way she holds

my bruised body

when I tremble

and the pain

is too much.