Contemplations on a Bridge to Nowhere

Photo by Mia Piexoto - 2023

The red rust bridge,

its frigid, frosted iron.

Unnatural within the natural.

Metal piercing ice.

Industrial supports

crossed and interlocked.

My perilous path ahead.

Eyeing my next step

reflected in the ice.

Am I thriving or surviving

in this creeping cold?

One slip, one trip, and I fall

into the endless, waiting waters.

I’d go numb from fear and cold.

I balance over the endless

ocean of possibility.

I find the odd serenity

in the serendipity

of this surreal reality.

The next step is a risk.

Why is this the remedy?

This godforsaken elegy,

must be an allegory:

I’m unable to take chances.

Just put your foot there.

The voice is a whisper,

drifting through the chilling air

on this bridge to nowhere.

Do I take the step

and risk the plunge?

Or do I stop and watch

the cold rear

its ugly, decrepit head?

The wind whips, the cold nips,

my weight shifts, I take the risk.