Shaking heartbeats vibrate my ribcage
the purple mountains watch this mortal struggle
The cantaloupe alpenglow settles the magic hour debate
30 feet above me, he hangs casually in his harness, smiling down
“Come bring me that pail of water Jill”, he urges my insides to smile
keep climbing
keep grunting
To hell with my ego
I’m starving, and this humble pie satiates my deep- belly pride
Why do I do this?
Did I yell that through the canyon?
Briefly panning out
The soundtrack to my jagged upward haul is laced with expletives from
some deep, guttural wolf inside of my throat.
This moment
How it squeezes my toes
How my head space breathes bigger to make room for mind maneuvers
How my loose braid catches in this belay device
A sharp knife cuts me free from a sure-scalping
Adrenaline fuels this rappel
Crack a celebratory beer on the dusty ground. My chalky fingernails barely able to grip the tab
The cold rush of bubbles remind me that this is being present
I watch my eyes in the truck mirror on the drive home
my bruised and battered hands surf the night thermals
Living on the razors edge
That was fun
“Wanna do it again tomorrow?”