Tripping Out

I walked to the edge today

   To that mark in the road of all existence

That denotes the end of one mile

and the beginning of another.

To the end of all theory, reason, and relativity,

to the beginning of imagination, madness, and irony.

Insanity stood before me

Draped in white and wearing

The mask of purity and innocence;

Except for the strange, grotesque,

Scarlet red… painted lips

Lips that grinned at me with stabbing sarcasms,

And the promise to defile all that would smile in return.

 Yet, those lips spoke in a gentle whisper saying,

“Come to me, my dear one. Come let me embrace you”.

Though the seduction of allure

Was evident in those melodious tones,

And beckoned me to take a least

One step over the edge,

I held fast my stance and succumbed

to the familiarity of the grip of her twin, Sanity.

Sanity, that chokes and tortures

And whose hold, at times, feels like chains

That eats into the flesh

Holding her victim in bondage

until her ravenous appetites have been fed.

Sanity, that gnaws to the core of her prey

And devours the sweet the flavors

Of emotional security

Until only shreds of what once were known as, Stability remains.

Remain like the mist of a breath

That manifests itself only as an intangible dream.

Leah Cecile Wilson © 2004