I don’t know when I stepped off a cliff,

but I did.

It’s obvious to me

and gradually

becoming obvious to others.

I never said, “I stepped off a cliff”

but I did.

There are no nets.

I was born a coward, or nurtured to be that way (I don’t know which)

and now, I am trying to become something else.

I reached a moment of desperation

where my life wasn’t worth much

and

I began to do acrobatics

without nets.

For a while, I pretended they were there, but now

I know they’re gone.

Safety Nets catch more fish than monsters of the deep,

and I have become a monster

in my own mind.

(Disclaimer: This is only a figure of speech—and should not cause my readers to worry about me. I am a psychologically well-adjusted friendly monster—I promise.)

There’s a Bogie film I watched when I was in 4th grade,

where the man on the flying trapeze says, “No nets.”

And then he falls hard.

I don’t intend to fall hard.

“No Nets!”