climb as high as you like.
this is an imaginary mountain.
i
each day
you force your
self out of
bed & yearn to
climb.
for years, you
follow a meandering
river through a blind
valley
or trace your
limping shadow
across a vacant
plateau.
ii
of a sudden, the
clouds shift &
the summits of many
mountains gleam in
your mind’s
eye.
you assault the nearest
foot hill with ferocious
will.
in daylight, you
drive your self
upward, each night,
the peak recedes
into the clouds.
iii
other climbers
exist. do you welcome
them and cinch together
against adversity, or
spurn them as
competitors &
sabotage their
path.
iv
this is an invisible
mountain; a
mountain throbbing
in your
chest.
your compass doesn’t
work here.
up & down no
longer
matter.
v
by now, your
heart & guts have been
spread across the
spine & shoulders of the
rock
& the stone has
tasted your
blood &
bones.
the rain, the
snow & the bashing
cold no longer reach
you
as you
separate from
time
vi
gnarly trees, immortal
lichen, stars
arising out of
nowhere.