The Other Side of the Fence

They tell you when you arrive,
just where the barriers and fences run and why.
What is safe and what is not
and you tell yourself this time you will obey the rules,
those stated and those merely implied,
assumed that sane souls will see them as if they were there.
You tell yourself, but then you get close to the edge,
and you hear the surf
and see the crabs on the rocky beach
and want to dance with them, and feel the danger
on your toes and without meaning to disobey
you are on the other side of the fence,
not even noticing them running toward you in warning
and horror. And when you do see them
you wonder what really has them so upset.
Your danger?
Or what perhaps they are missing on the safe side of the fence?

About this poem

Most of the crazy things I have chosen have worked out well for me. Don’t ask me why. I am not even suggesting it to others, but still, some things are worth the risks.

Tom