We all have limits with in our selves as to what we can attain . Some times hurt , anger, frusration can obsure goals and insight. I feel pain in your poem .. I wish you brighter days and will pray for you... M ,, The picture blends with the poem so well

Great philosophy. I didn't know that such elevation occupied the beach. ;-)

Ron

Excellent, Jude!
Sheila

good one Robert, what we do after the thought makes the man. I use to be afraid to write for certain dumb reasons, failure the biggest one. I never was that good in english grammar, flunked a few times. Writing a term paper in highschool scared the socks off of me. Everyone hated term paper time. Until this very day I'm not that fond of writing, I simply dive into the fear, so now I'm hear, see there I spelled here, "hear" peace brother

Excellent and profound
Peace be with you

William

This is when you tell the ego to stop thinking and listen to space :-) Good write!

ah yes 'the climb'....I can relate to this poem on many levels...love it...and the photo makes me want to keep climbing to 'seek' the top ...masterful Jude!

dang, that stairway looks precarious indeed.

Exploring the unknown over dangerous terrain mental or otherwise, this very intriquing poem is a cliffhanger, I see a robedancer in precarious balance, great metaphorical analogies and allegories.
Blessings Jude! Jasmin Horst

A little bit of the Carl Jung in here Jude
Bridges usually symbolise the passing over of the intellect to the psyche, which then manifests itself in remarkable ways of expression.

Peter

The master's pen leaves its mark once more. Love the poem, love the pic.

"now i realize, it’s the “not knowing”
occupying the ridge of distant cliffs,

keeping me climbing,
climbing over what I refuse to imagine
or pretend not to see …"

Keep on climbing my treasured friend. At the top is what its all about. - great ending.

Our thoughts and dogmas take form, and gradually life of their own. The counterbalance between the cravings to look beyond and the awareness of the existing "unknown" is excellent.
The last few lines provides an electric ending
"

now i realize, it’s the “not knowing”
occupying the ridge of distant cliffs,


keeping me climbing,
climbing over what I refuse to imagine
or pretend not to see …"
The climb or the Will has been expanded exponentially in this poem. Great work, Jude!

A wonderful addition to your poetry is the beautiful artwork you have crafted to complement your use of words. It's composition and nouanced highlights make me think again of that beach in the City Of Angels film somehow. And your opening line immediately takes me to my very favourite and oft-cited words by Robert Browning: "Ah, but a man's reach exceed his grasp or what's a heaven for?" Expressions of discomfort in this are palpable, Kartero, as you delve into such "out of your shell" experiences - difficult for anyone let alone the carapace! :)) And for the Dreamer to appear to have sudden realisations that "i never considered my inadequacy to venture beyond my own scope of possibilities" must be really disconcerting: no wonder the tremulous hesitancy, the distrust of wings. However, it might also be said that it is the dreams themselves that provide the cushioning, the protection, the force of anti-gravity that carries and propels the Dreamer onwards and into the glorious unknowing, the magnetism which itself keeps drawing him/her onwards and upwards. Your thoughts here are wonderfully set - I know only too well how treacherous slippery pebbles are beneath tentative footfalls and how rickety and rotten stairways are often more scary (and usually longer, more drawn-out!) than attempting the cliff-face itself. What fascinates me most about this poem is the preoccupation, perhaps, with what lies at the end of it all: what an ultimate destination or "heaven" will be like when we finally arrive there; Dreamers are Journeymen/women who are always on the move, restless and yet always seeming to need to "get somewhere" or penetrate the unknowing. It's a most exhilarating personality-type to inhabit although always also uncomfortably straddling physical, emotional and metaphysical dimensions. Whatever, Amigo; the important thing is to be true to your heart, whatever the mind tries to dictate: the mind may have the capacity to dominate and rationalise but only the heart can ache and break if it is divided against itself. Be always well and free, Jude. xx

Good write and enjoyed. LadyJ

You have to take the blinkers off before you can really see what is actually going on in life.

Excellent use of the bridge metaphor.

Jimmy

I'm wondering...which came first, the photo or the poem? Both are equally profound works, Jude!
Blessings and Love - Micke

Excellent write and photo, it all fits together nicely.

Cheers,
Dan

wonderful images, as usual!!

thought provoking

From day one we move into the unknown, for some it is easy and others lead to fear. We need to take and accept what life offers. Thank you Jude, the photo you have chosen compliments your words. Thank you for sharing.

Newfie Hugs, Rose

We climb the cliff that's getting higher by the power of our imagination, it will go up and up until we decide what we are going to do when we reach its zenith, until then, we will be just climbers desperate not to fall inside the waiting open gap of the abyss.

Georg

The lines that you let drift out of your mind, slightly seasoned by heart and soul, ring as true as the picture you chose to accompany this piece of work. We all for the most part tend to go through this lifetime and pick up our share of scars, aches and hurts that often determine how we accept future risks. Still...if we look back at even the worst of our worst past memories there we can accept them because it proved we have lived not sat passively by on the sidelines of life.
fee

It seems we are all trying to avoid the abyss before us that is man made.

Jude,
This photo is stunning! I feel the deep emotions that the photo contains, your poem is filled with a passion that is deeply moving.
Uncertainty, the unknown, is all that fear brings to your life, live without fear, step into the journey toward destiny, allow yourself to live in the moment and capture the happiness that is fleeting by. People only come together once in a lifetime, why not go for whatever it is you are afraid to go for. It could be the beginning of a new dawn for you, the beginning of happiness and fulfillment on a grand scale.
Climb that rickety stairway, because there are no certainties in this world, only chances on a better way of life, I wish you shelter from the storm, but most of all I wish you love.... That song came to mind as I was writing this review...Let me send you healing energy, and much peace, and love, dear friend,
Amber "V"

Serpentine...Ladder Psalm:Infinity = the symbol - number 8 lying on its side

Sea spray corroded boards susceptable to decay from the salts of old/new wounds

Telepathic gradient in 3D sloping maze supported by mere toothpicks of the soul - graduating through metaphor, to sturdier tongue depressors, a blueprint and constructed metaphor on stilts to strengthen bonds of love and human tenderness...compassion

Sage

I hope that all this climbing i am doing after this hospital stay will make me stronger too...e

...and the search for meaning and possibility goes on, Jude. Explored with depth and great questioning.

John

Jude, climbing the stairway is hard but its worth it...decpite exhaustion, you will become more stronger, and maybe she will see the light in you, value your strength (you never know...)
If you know what is going to happen next, life will not be interesting...
Excellent write,
Love Ankin

Each day is a day of progress, steady progress forward, if you make it so. You may not see it; but it's there. Let us not worry about outward appearances, we are judged by what's in the heart. When climbing a steep hill, people are often more conscious of the weakness of their stumbling feet than of the view "residing beyond the ridge", the grandeur or even of the upward progress. But it's always about the journey, not the destination. Really beautiful stuff Jude. Amazing!!

i enjoyed this!

The depth requires multiple readings so I'll be back to this one. Until then, the lines that catch my attention are these:

"now i realize, i never considered my inadequacy

to venture beyond my own scope of possibilities."

Enjoyed.

I'm a little confused, too, like Sherry. Ok, the first "your" is about yourself, right? But at the end, there are two things that keep you climbing: the "not knowing" and the "emergent sky living in your (the other's) eyes right? I understand the emergent sky comment about your -- friend, woman, man, lover, other, whatever. But how does the "not knowing" keep you climbing? I like the photograph. it looks unstable, and goes with the theme of the poem. i'm not saying you're unstable. You know what I mean. julie

First, let me say I love the picture; it really takes the mind on a long and developing journey. Your poem seems a bit cryptic to me, as though something is being left unsaid that is the key to its cohesiveness. I love many of your lines, they show the well established bard in you, but I am struggling with pulling it all together...probably just me, I am sleep deprived this weekend and on my way to remedy that.
Take care,
Sherry

Jude you removed words from your poem, that totally changes it, because there is no "she" anymore...so here is my revised comment...

I love your photo, it reminds me of a monster machine getting ready to gobble up the cliffs ;-) while I know that has nothing to do with the poem, part of it made me think of the author not wanting to make the climb for fear of being devoured...

I'm surprised at some words that seem to define your vulnerability, but on closer look, I think just the opposite, you are showing the fact that you are beyond fear and can overcome any situation that may look like it can best you, and you will not be detered,for you are armed and ready to keep climbing no matter the unknown...

always a joy to read you;-) even when i get it wrong;-)

Interesting poem, Jude. I love the ideas residing on the cliffside.

So meaningful, Jude; I love the metaphorical tones that you have utilized here. Thank you for sharing. Love and peace,

Regis