sky rope (subterranean rappel): Working to Earn a Gift of Wings

author’s note:

To those reading this poem five hundred years from now:

Humans used to count off seconds by saying “one Mississippi”…two Mississippi…three Mississippi…” and so on.

WORKING TO EARN A GIFT OF WINGS

This morning
while painting the eaves
I suddenly felt what I hadn’t felt in weeks:
that tension in my shoulders

as once again
two wing buds bulged out
from my scapula bones—
right side and left.

I knew, from experience
I shouldn’t try to force those buds to sprout.
But despite my restraint
the shoots shrank back
before I could count to “nine Mississippi”.

Yes, teasers like that one disappoint
but at the same time
they reawaken hope—
this morning, I vowed once more:
one day with wings I’ll soar.

Don't laugh
know what’s possible—
years ago I met someone
who could fly to the high clouds
on wings she usually kept hidden.

And occasionally for me
two shoots have shot all the way out
and spread into wings.
Yes, the feathery sails soon retracted
but I still had enough time each time
to go on a short flight
like the one once done at Kitty Hawk.

But I’m not waiting idly
for such blessings to descend:
every day I work to elevate heart and head
hoping unseen forces
(both without and within)
will respond when I rise high enough—
will reward me
with a permanent set of reliable wings

to unfurl when the need arises.

But I though I use tested tools
I only bump up a tiny bit each day.
So I’m realistic:
I may not live long enough to earn that wingspan.
Nonetheless
I’ll keep trying all the way to the end—
I will because
the innocent in me still believes
my daily efforts at elevation
help lift this ground-dwelling species up.

Yes, I realize
my total contribution
may only be one iota
but with enough iotas
we will have iotas enough.

mythsteps · Working to Earn a Gift of Wings

Labels: growth, iota, metaphor, new age, poem, poetry, spirituality, wings