Old Rag Poem by Masha Danevasha

Up and up
On shaky feet
Heart is pounding
Too tired to spit
Retracing the steps
From ten years past
No partners in crime
Alone at last
Hand over hand
Try not to slip
The rocks are sharp
The slide is steep

Forward and up
No looking back
Another scramble
Breath in and attack
This rock is inviting
Too bad I can't stop
If it kills me, I will see
What lays at the top

Each time teeth clench
and then let go
Leave another heartbreak
Behind a stone
Can't let doubt or excuses
Enter my mind
Don't dwell on it
Learn from it
Leave it behind

Stumble, jump over
Teeter, stay on my feet
Keep trying, Old Rag,
To delay your defeat
Summit at last
Pil'grim, you've earned your rest
Collapse, gasp for air
Bloody beer would be best

Time to ponder the world
And my place in it
I look up at the sky
And see no limit


*Old Rag Mountain is in Shannandoah, Virginia - its a must climb.