Stars (in Their Multitudes)

I saw an escalator to the brightest stars –

But its flow seemed so dauntingly swift that I would fly off and be hurt,

So I kept my eyes glued to the pavement and walked along the dusty road.

I saw a stairway up the highest mountain –

But when I reached the bottom with arms outstretched above my head,

My fingers barely brushed the edge of its first step,

So I kept my eyes glued to the gravel and jogged along the dusty road.

I saw a rope ladder hanging from the tallest tree –

But it danced and swayed in the wind,

Jerking the ladder away from my grasp and leaving my fists to close on empty air,

So I kept my eyes glued to the dirt and ran along the dusty road.

I could have pushed the limits of my strength and held fast to the escalator;

I could have pushed the limits of my height and stretched tall to pull myself up the staircase;

I could have pushed the limits of my endurance and with burning muscles scaled the rope ladder.

But I passed all of them by, so I continue to sprint along the dusty road

Winding down, down, down into the valley,

Though each step sends shooting pangs anew;

Glancing back at the multitude of escalators I never saw before,

I keep hurtling on, one foot in front of the other,

The heavy weight hanging on my heart working its gravity.