On the Cusp
I am on the
Sharp edge of
Change, growth.
It cuts my feet.
They bleed.
Where these crossroads
Meet, the road
Is bare, well-trod
And the signpost here,
Painted blue and white
Like a Venetian mooring
Pole is too bright, too
Bright. Its straight
Fingers point four ways:
Those two back there -
See, back there - I came
By them, refuse to
Choose them again.
These two roads right
Here ...
... are unknowns, not uniform ...
... which to pick ... I think ...
To take the stark one -
The one that slopes
Uphill in a straight bare
Line. It cuts directly
Through my eyes, is
Unfussy, looks
Disciplined. I see the
Other road is
Lined with flowers,
Nicely cobbled with
Bricks glowing redly
In the sun. It is a
Haphazard, coggly one
Meandering lazily
Side to side
And leading down,
I suspect, to some kind
Of absorption, of
Compromise, a kind of
Closure where
Nothing is ever
Certain, always
Diffuse. I will
Choose my Fate -
Take the straight one -
The black, no-nonsense
Aesthetic that seems to
Brook no lack. I will
Take it on the chin, on
The rise. Not look back.
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