The top,
I stand,
Breath heavy,
Legs weakened,
Hands chaffed,
But I do not wait,
For the sores to pass,
This peak has me numb,
As I witness the way
The clouds meet
The sun meet
The horizon.
The way in which one breath,
From my cracked lips soars across,
Inspecting the land,
Leaving its invisible signature,
Like the footprints I have just left that will soon
Dry out, be replaced with others,
But I have not come
To show the earth it belongs to me
Because that is not true.
I have come so that I may give myself wholeheartedly
To the tidal wave that crashes down,
And hits the mind
At these heights.
I have climbed these rock faces,
I have made tears in the surface of my skin
From where I have rushed to reach the summit,
Clawing out of impatience,
Sweating at the prospect
Of being stuck, left alone in rocky limbo,
Between what lies beneath, what has been left behind
And what shines above, what is to become.
You see at these heights,
There is more to see
You stand,
Chest out
Head high
And feet firm to the ground.
You are here
You have made it.
It is as if the secret to the world
Can be found
At these heights
And you are here
And it is real.
Every speechless moment,
Where your mouth opens
Ready to comment
But nothing comes out
Because there are no words for this
Except
I am here
I have made it
But
At these heights
The edges are brittle,
The fall, further, harder
And you must watch
Where you place your next step.
I am here
I have made it to these heights
But, for now, before my legs collapse
Under the adrenaline
I will sit for a while,
Enjoy the view
Because at these heights
You can climb higher if you wish
But this journey has been long and tough
And I am tired,
I am happy but I am tired.
So I will sit for a while
Enjoy the view
Because at these heights
It is nothing short of beautiful.
-Liam Xavier
