Looking Up

May 23, 2021

(Sunset on the road, by mapichai; https://www.vectorstock.com/royalty-free-vector/sunset-on-the-road-vector-9814556)

This blog post is a little different. I’ve never claimed to be a poet, but things in my life have been changing and somehow my gratitude came out in something that felt like free verse. I thought I’d share it here.

For years I’ve been a defensive walker

Eyes cast down,

Wary of cracked pavement, dog poo, mud puddles.

Then one day, when I was ready,

I raised my chin ever so slightly,

Surprised to see the possibility of a new path,

Diverging just a little,

Enough to let me consider

Three, maybe four steps beyond,

What they might hold.

And so, I looked at those steps,

Tempted by where they could lead

Raising my chin more,

Bringing more possibility into my gaze,

Making more new, lighter steps possible,

Until finally,

Though with caution not altogether exiled

I could lift my chin fully,

Relax into the new ease of my neck, my shoulders,

And marvel at the future that awaited,

Steps, miles, months ahead.