Week of March 13, 2022: Plateau

Soundcloud link: https://soundcloud.com/wizardofwestmarch/plateau

This poem came about reflecting on life, but through the lens of the book I read this past week, Last Exit by Max Gladstone. It had me reflecting on a lot of things, because of the way the characters looked back on their own bad decisions and moments of cowardice amid all their absurd heroics.

I am probably going to put up a review of the book at some point this week here on Medium. In part because I adored the book and I want to put my thoughts down in a longer form, but also in part to reflect on my reaction in relation to my own writing. I felt enough echoes of my current work (a Space Opera titled Learning to Dream) despite the fact I wrote most of that book last year and finished the rough draft either end of 2021 or early 2022, and am finishing a 3rd or 4th draft before sending it off to readers, yet so much of Max’s newest novel resonates powerfully within my own and I need to reflect on that.

Plateau

Every so often a plateau is reached
As we climb up the mountain of our life
And we see all the old handholds we chose
To end up where we stand
With wonder that we survived
And wonder at that might have been had we
Dared to reach the farther grip
Despite the risk it entailed
To talk to that person who’s eyes seduced
Or to chase that scary job
Instead of always the easy reach
That left the muscles weak
And now that plateau that felt so sure
Starts to crumble underfoot
As the world twirls away
And leaves that past behind
With only questions left to linger
As the doubts take root and thrive