LADDERS
for John Heron
Some ladders go up some ladders
go down
It’s true! Of course all ladders intrinsically
go both ways
both up and down
though we prop one up to climb out of
somewhere or
put one down to climb down into somewhere
But in both cases we’d climb back down or
back up unless we can keep
going at the level we’ve climbed up or
down to without needing to return
The tall wind-blasted fairy-castle caves at
Capadoccia in Turkey have ladders going way up
then precariously down
We had to climb down to prophet Daniel’s
supposed tomb on Prophet Daniel Street in Cairo
then had to clamber precariously up
It all depends where we begin
down or up and where we need to go
up or down
Oh and take a ladder when you leave this poem
would you?
Climb up there and see if
anyone’s listening?
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