Us Included

Us Included

SOPHIA CLINE

You can ask us now What you should do But we cannot give you the answer you want

Leaving is risking Being caught in the storm Where all things, us included, are subject to change But before you leave There is this moment Where you can see the wind laid before you From that point, which many, us included, don’t notice You can watch the wind’s grooves, its rhythm and flux It is beautiful, but within it, every inch is an hour That is torn to pieces And thrown at your feet As you walk, the road you will take Will both lead and circle you Taunting that you may never go back the way you came Each step you take Will be another cut from the wind on your skin As its tender blades kiss your ears, kiss your neck

Every hour after you have left Will be another bruise on your hands from the rocks As you scramble to grab hold, but only find gravel You will not fall Even if you want to You will boulder on, through the wind laid before you You, Kilimanjaro, will stand in its wake Bruises and cuts on a flesh like stone You, Kilimanjaro, will brave all storms Pass all tests, endure all trials, You will not only survive the pressure of an unforgiving Earth You will flourish in it Each crushing pulse propelling you Higher into an all-else-untouched horizon But you will stand alone And no one, us included, will see