Naked, on the Edge

Pushed or dragged or on our own

Past shadowed, bony, leafless trees,

Through tangled briar and rock-strewn field

As hearts pound madly with unease.

Up to the end of all there is,

Where darkness hangs in shrouds of mist

Our souls stand trembling, staring, awed

Within our terror’s hardened fist.

It’s here, where life and death divide

Where anxious, troubled minds lay bared

The time has come, its time to choose,

Step out or back, be forced or dared.

We stand there, naked, on the edge,

At mercy of ourselves or fate,

Circumstance and dreams collide,

It is too soon. Or no, too late.

What waits out in the fog of night

Beyond what we can see or hear;

A rescue from this bloodied world

Or all the horrors that we fear?

The wind blows hard upon cliff

We cling to hope and to the ledge,

’Til strength is gone, we teeter, cry,

Then tumble, naked, from the edge.