Walk the Tightrope
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December.23.2024
This or That. Vol.29. Poetry Contest
Sponsor- Edward Ibeh
~ Placced Second~
Trudging through thorny and rocky paths,
His feet often got cracked and torn.
Yet he persevered, for he had a lovely family.
His dear one stood by his side as a pillar of support,
Sharing the joys and hardships of life together.
Gave their two sons the best education possible
Seeing their success, as parents, they were proud,
He had the joy of a victor who conquered Mount Everest.
He saw constellations of stars twinkling,
In his wife’s eye, each time their children,
Ascended a new rung in the ladder of success.
But how swift life changed and took a drastic turn
His beloved’s sudden demise was too hard a blow,
A bolt from the blue, oozing out all his life sap.
His sons relocated to far off places for their work
Eventually their connection ended up in a casual phone call
They had no time for their father.
Expectations darkened into anxiety,
Anxiety into dread and dread into deep despair.
He walked alone, like a phantom in the dark,
Haunted by memories, unable to banish the grief.
How he had wished to spread his wings
And ride upon the wind like an eagle!
But now he feels he is just a step away from hell.
He has seen only defeats despite his best efforts
From everywhere, reeks the foul smell of neglect.
Life has taught him some bitter lessons;
Love never lasts and hopes born may die swiftly
Those we love may leave us cold and alone in darkness.
Even the effulgence of the sun may die out one day.
Afraid of his future and unsure of the present,
Upon a tightrope of pressure, he now walks,
Without a safety net below to hold him.
If he looks down, he may surely fall,
If he looks up, he may become dizzy
He sees peril looming and darkness engulfing.
Feeling a loner in a loveless island, he keeps sobbing.
Injected with a paralytic, he helplessly awaits his fate
He feels, how close to the edge he lives,
Not knowing when he would lose his balance,
And fall to the abysmal pit below.
Before darkness closes in and suffocates him,
He wishes to end his tightrope walk.
Exactly at that moment of his final surrender,
He heard somebody whisper from inside;
“Fret not, fear not, walk the tightrope.
The only option is to look straight ahead
And try to reach the other side of safety”
Was he in a trance? Was he asleep or is he awake?
Is it the voice of his dear one insulating him with hope?
Or are they the words of his Heavenly Father
Who will abide with him and never ever forsake him!
Copyright © Valsa George | Year Posted 2024
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