Dropping the Prop
I must learn to dance with yes, less
and go off with no, to tango.
Yes, you bring me accomplishments, adventures.
You, no, bring solitude, reclamation.
Yes, was a prop that held my place,
a sigil that chastened self doubt.
Magical yes, drinks power from performance
hiding worries over worth in limelight.
Yes drinks in the crowd’s lusty roar,
addiction to approbation.
No, knows the fickle light from yes burns bright,
waiting in the wings to stage recovery.
No, shoots out the damned follow spot
and shades the self from adulation.
The prop, I drop, unbound to yes, I stride
into a place where no one weighs my worth.
David Hirst 1/21/2025
I must learn to dance with yes, less
and go off with no, to tango.
Yes, you bring me accomplishments, adventures.
You, no, bring solitude, reclamation.
Yes, was a prop that held my place,
a sigil that chastened self doubt.
Magical yes, drinks power from performance
hiding worries over worth in limelight.
Yes drinks in the crowd’s lusty roar,
addiction to approbation.
No, knows the fickle light from yes burns bright,
waiting in the wings to stage recovery.
No, shoots out the damned follow spot
and shades the self from adulation.
The prop, I drop, unbound to yes, I stride
into a place where no one weighs my worth.
David Hirst 1/21/2025