The Cliff

Could I stand at that ledge forever, lost to time, just watching the waves crash upon the rocks? It wouldn't be right to turn back after climbing so high, but its still terrifying to leap off.

So why climb, why aspire so high in the first place? We are taught that to achieve what we want we must climb. But what if we don't find another mountain to conquer on the other side to take us further skyward, but rather a cliff to halt our progression? Unable to climb further, I seem to have plateaued and the only safe bet is to turn back, to try another path to achieving success.

And yet I can't seem to turn back yet. I've worked so hard to get here I don't want to give up. At least I'd like to enjoy my own personal glory for a bit. Have you ever tried to accomplish something only to stop when you knew that you couldn't go any further? To see that no matter how hard you work at it, you still can't climb any further because your path is gone. The only thing left on your ascent toward the sky is the blue sea stretched below. Its vast and rough and you know that if you fall it'll swallow you whole and spit your tattered corpse onto the rocks.

But if you stand long enough at that cliff you'll eventually need to look up to see the goal stretched above you. That was my desire anyway - to reach the sky. And I see the birds, the masters of the sky, as they soar from the mountain into the heavens. And I realize how the great ones really climb to the heights we find them today. The trail becomes, not a test of survival, but rather one of devotion. And to get to the very pinnacle you need complete devotion: to give yourself entirely to your aspirations. But there's still the dread of falling as I stand at the ledge. To make that last leap only to find failure - that is what's truely frightening. To know that once I jump its all up to Chance to stop me from crashing onto those jagged rocks. Chance, Hope, and a little bit of Luck.

Because the best don't climb after all. They fly





so ends another Tale from Blood Talon Cove

My New Year's Resolution

Dear Marlboro,

We've had a long run together (can you believe its been almost a year and a half already?) but we both knew this was coming. This has been my longest relationship to date (except for the one with X-Box, but that's still an on/off thing). I promise it isn't because there's someone else though I guess you have some right to be jealous. I know I've been having weekly rendezvous with College Football Parlays but that relationship brings more pain than pleasure. Besides, I've only hit it once so it shouldn't really count, right? I also know I've been neglecting you for Alcohol more times than I can remember, and I seem to have developed a thing for Irish Car Bombs but it feels like another one of those passing phases. I will admit to you that Johnnie Walker and I are close but no matter what we will only be co-workers.

Though this is goodbye, let's not forget our long history together. Our families had known each other for a long time already. Your cousin Now was always there to greet me at the door everyday when I got home from school. But its been 5 years however since he and my dad have spoken to each other and I guess that shows just how much times have changed. My family was not happy when they found out about you and I. Some of my friends even went to extreme efforts to try to separate the two of us, sabotage what we had. Do you remember the time Allison tried to drown you that night we all went out drinking? You were good to me during that time of my life but now I think its time I make a decision that's best for me.

I know we will always be friends, maybe even hangout every once in a while and I may even one day realize I've made the biggest mistake of my life and come, literally, crawling back to you. Until then I just want you, need you to know that we can no longer be what we once were. Please don't make this any harder than it has to be for the two of us. No silly games to catch my eye - a different streak of color across your carton or change in blend for a smoother taste. I know we will see each other again - across the counter at the 7-11 or at parties, you with new flame. And whether it is a good or bad memory that strikes when we lock eyes, let's just leave us at that, a memory.





fuck, now I want a smoke...