There is a line in the sand I cannot cross,
Drawn so long ago.
There’s a million fears I cannot touch,
Steeped in crimson woe.
My fortress became a prison,
I hold the only key.
The door stands wide open,
But I have fears controlling me.
Facing the demons,
The haunt of the past,
The night of no endings,
The dawn has been cast.
Rumbles of thunder,
A crackle, a flash,
Goblins are thirsty,
I hear teeth gnash.
I cannot stay here,
The wall’s crumbling fast,
The only way out
Is not a quick dash.
The winds are a howling,
Crude branches do thrash,
The road is ablaze,
Atop shards of glass.
It’s a walk through fire,
How could I last?
Oh God, can you hear me?
I need a free pass.
“Remember the ropes?”
Huh? What ropes? Oh….
My mind wanders back
To a time of dispair,
When winds of change
Raged tornatic warfare.
Oh… wait a minute.
Did God just speak to me?
A stray thought? Birdie whisper?
Call it what it be.
I saw the ropes
No one else could see,
Draped across aisles
In front of me.
Call it neurosis,
A temp psychosis,
Past maximum stress
What else could it be?
I studied the shadows,
Light patterns on beams,
But found no logic
To explain what it means.
So I took it as a sign,
I took it as a warning,
They were there some days,
But not every morning.
I saw thick cords,
Thought of ships at sea
When ropes crisscrossed
In front of me.
Illusions continued
Till someone hung a noose
And I deflied work rules
To go cut it loose?
Did they write me up?
No, bosses let it snooze.
But the old walrus saw
And spread the news around,
Then the hanger wandered in,
Thanked me for taking down
His alternative exit plan
From a company leaving town.
I quit seeing ropes
Crossed in front of me
After hacking down the rope
Everyone else can see.
We talked of despirations,
We were all biding time,
Of accidental suicides,
And clarity of mind.
Now I may be crazy,
Just a little out of joint.
That is a true story,
But not quite the point.
The thing about ropes:
They looked as real as can be,
But when I approached,
They vanished in front of me.
Remembering the ropes
Revealed the secret I need,
My fears are delusions
And faith is the key.
There’s a line in the sand that I must cross,
Drawn so long ago.
There’s a million fears that I must face,
Steeped in crimson woe.
N. ©2013
Barnbees 