You approached this summit that day.
I mused at the distance before you
And could not turn my eyes away.
Looking down, always down, I adored you
And wondered why I could not ignore you.
At the top of the straightforward stairs,
I lowered my eyes to see the souls there
Who climb and climb, then turn around,
But you just ascended without a sound.
You never complained; you never frowned.
You just kept climbing slowly
And refused to back down.
Oh, what you began to show me!
I had stopped at this landing
And had not returned
To my home of misunderstanding.
Instead, I’d been standing,
And weakly, I’d yearned
For a heaven that turned
Out to be close, not far away.
But you ended my waiting
When without hesitating,
You climbed through the night, through a day.
To promising skies you lifted dark eyes,
So unassuming and disarming.
I found you much too charming,
And with your gaze, I felt all sighs
Abandon my lungs and leave me gasping.
Your grace became alarming,
And startled, I was grasping
For the railing at my side.
Staring, you nearly stopped.
You nearly slowed your stride,
But then your gaze I dropped.
I stiffened with a breeze
That shook me where I stood
And almost brought me to my knees.
You passed me as I trembled,
And you said, “You know you should.”
You went onward to the next new flight,
And the feeling I had resembled
My indecision that started the night
That I made it to this place.
I feared to look up and finally ascend.
For the longest time, I sat and faced
The stairs below my desire,
And with your passing, I met an end.
I turned my head, stared at your back.
You intended to climb much higher
To take the distance that I lacked,
But you’d invited me to come along.
Staying here would seem so utterly wrong
When you, unsmiling, would leave me behind.
So I took a step forward and lifted my eyes
To straightforward stairs, to promising skies.
As I watched you leave, I needed to find
Another chance, a different way
To leave the summit you reached one day.
With you, I want to climb these stairs to the top,
Looking up, never down, too strong of heart to stop.