Bruce Springsteen wrote "No Surrender,"
about seeking to keep promises
made during a rebellious youth.
It doesn’t work out
for the narrator
the way he’d hoped
way back in the day..

Hiroo Onoda wrote No Surrender, too,
detailing his 30 years of guerilla war
until his old Japanese commander
was flown out to tell him
to capitulate.
World War Two finally ended
for him
in February 1974
when "everything went black."

Rick Nielsen wrote "Surrender"
for Cheap Trick
and it was their first single
to hit the Hot 100.
Submission seemed to serve them well.

There is perhaps a lesson
to be learned
in these specific facts.
If you cannot see it for yourself
I can’t be bothered to tell you.
I quit.