The black dog bites

Shoulders back, head up
conscious as I breathe,
in, out, in, out
as the diaphragm moves,
a moment I've lived a thousand times
yet always makes it's presence felt,
I close my eyes acknowledging pain
as the black dog bites.
Busily I write
scribble after scribble
words of thought, emotion, hope,
the spine shivers 
the stomach churns
wondering why I ramble,
yet today's rhetoric
is tomorrow's lesson
as the black dog bites.
The muscles ache
the heart pumps
the body takes a bow,
these roads I run
through rain and shine
rising to the challenge,
today is different
an added purpose
comes through cluttered mind,
a sacred alliance 
of mind and body
as the black dog bites.
An idle moment
that isolation
lays it's icy hand,
these thoughts so empty
they toss and turn
did somebody order anxiety?,
but something deeper
comes to the fore
as experience heralds a warrior,
the light will shine
just let it in
as the black dog bites.