"Hope is the defense we have for life itself"

Some nights are like this 
mind in clutches of a sinister eclipse 
a foreign language reverberates 
as I wander through hallways 

standing under the glow of 'Exit'
lit as if a character from a noir movie 
the old man who liked me enough to teach

he offered a beer
which I accepted with trepidation 
    (my social skills are nonexistent)
thankfully in silence we drank 
knowing that our troubles tonight 
were bigger than words

as he got up to leave 
he said, 
"I give you lesson for today. Esperanza es la defensa de la vida misma"
he repeated it a few times
helping me sound right 

I am not sure I agreed with him
hope sometimes is just an excuse 
or it the most painful despair 
but it sounded wonderful 
as new languages do
at least I am learning 
to speak Spanish. 

© Lost