Sunday, July 24, 2011

Monday Poetry Jam -- Temptation




Cliffhanger


So here you are again, after all these years,
at the edge, staring down the gorge,
old friend you never thought you’d see again,
higher, steeper, whispering louder
than ever before.  Vertigo pulls
in the gut, looking out at thin air,
wishing you could plead innocence
instead of feeling old  shame,
how perfectly you understand the choice:

You step off into space and fly…
    feel the wind sing on your skin…
       blood boil in your heart…
            fall truly alive and free…
then agony – suddenly broken and torn,
faced with crawling back up the rocks
with bleeding fingers

Or you can back away through brush and stride…
     solid ground supporting feet…
         self-control reining mind…
             march with righteousness…
that turns dull gray slogging through the chill
mildew growing on souls of feet
numb with growing cold.

You act as if the choice is hard,
     dancing circles at the crumbling gap…
          asking air for answers…
                coward’s cry for sympathy…
Then why the struggle through the thorns
to see this awesome view again?
If you didn’t plan to jump.

13 comments:

  1. The ending is perfect. Love those last lines. Don't beat yourself up too much.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think I've said it before, poetry is normally not my cup of tea. But this one made me actually swallow hard. Very hard.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sometimes the journey is tough and relentless, but we asked for it, didn't we?

    "fall truly alive and free…" is an experience ~

    Happy sunday ~

    ReplyDelete
  4. That's a thought-provoking verse you've got, there. Goodness. Well written :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. mmm...hard question there at the end...why so if you planned to do it anyway and that is the tricky part when we begin to give in to temptation...a slippery slope that...

    ReplyDelete
  6. I have jumped & not jumped - and you've described both actions perfectly. Flying and crashing; slogging and frozen. The choice seems obvious now!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thank heaven for parachutes...

    ReplyDelete
  8. Interesting piece. I am afraid of heights. Have you missed me? Did you think I was dead? I'm not.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Very thought provoking.

    Anna :o]

    ReplyDelete
  10. Poet to poet, I really enjoyed this- your wide observance and humor come through.

    I am so glad you are sharing this stuff. Have you ever published? Poetry, I realize you probably have technical stuff and related articles.

    Thanks...I learn from your style

    ReplyDelete
  11. KAPOW! THAT WAS AWESOME! Another fabulous offering and peek at your underbelly. I think you are a fantastic poet--the imagry is beautiful and strong. Did you take the photo too?

    ReplyDelete
  12. REally good stuff here. Your words have gained a lot of power in retirement.

    ReplyDelete
  13. wow! very deep and thought provoking. I can feel the struggle and indecision. glad I popped over today.

    ReplyDelete