flight

boys dream of flying
tracing a path in the sky
studying the trajectory of birds and stars and leaves aloft
thinking
if only
I could do that too

boys jumping off
of cliffs
of trees and barns
falling in a heap of broken bones and belief

to try again
with wax and feathers and balsa
cloth and string and wire
and wishes
pedaling furiously into the wind
still pointing their dreams at altitude

not to be nearer to God nor angels nor death
but exhilaration
silence
freedom from earthly weight and want
from need

always falling

and always thudding home to earth
the mother
the female
needs

we all have some of this in us
this inclination to be other
perhaps it is what makes us human
we look at our feet and want to fly


martha
bilski 4.06