there is a moment
between the decision to make a mistake
and actually making it,
when you think about
how the power lines
make lace spiderweb shadows on
the sidewalk
and how the the sunlight and
the moonlight have the same
sparkle
and you wonder if your choice really
matters,
because daisies will still have
candied orange centers and
it will still take fourteen hours to drive to
Bangor to an airport with
one bathroom and airtight security
so they can take your toe nail clippers
before you board your flight home
and realize you
left an hour before sunset
and somehow it's underwhelming
to be so far above the
sun.
there is a moment
between the realization that you've gone too far
and taking the step over the line
when you see the cracking
of the pavement
and go to buy a roll of duct tape
because there's nothing duct tape can't fix
so you spread a thin layer of
love and adhesive
on the concrete
to keep the edges of your heart from
splitting open,
but you trip and fall into the hole
you were trying to bridge
and you're right back where you started
trying not to break your momma's back
but the gap is too wide to jump
like those kids on the playground
tracing cloud colored circles
in sidewalk chalk around your head
just trying to make you understand.
so before you decide
to make that mistake
trace the lace shadows on the
roadways and
tape your
heart together
so you can draw a
staircase to understanding
and
follow a trail
of innocent eyes
to a place where you
don't feel so lost.
because there are no mistakes
only choices to make
and now is the
only moment
to make them.