Falling off a cliff aesthetic

Surrender to Initiation, if you dare

And if the earthly has forgotten you, say to the still earth: I flow. To the rushing water speak: I am. ~ Rainer Maria Rilke Credits: poem - lifeinpoetry. Image: Hungarian Soul. Rilke poem from "Sonnets to Orpheus"

“I nudged myself closer to the ledge and closed my eyes and thought 'Oh what a life this is, why do we have to be born in the first place, and only so we can have our poor gentle flesh laid out to such impossible horrors as huge mountains and rock and empty space,' and with horror I remembered the famous Zen saying, 'When you get to the top of a mountain, keep climbing.' The saying made my hair stand on end; it had been such cute poetry sitting on Alvah's straw mats.”

cliff diving

I swallow hard and open the door, mindful of the sores on my hand. It's just Cole. He smiles grimly at me. "Hey." The attempted smile vanishes after that. He stares at my hands. "What happened to you?" "Rain," I say, keeping it short. He nods once and stands straighter so his fourteen-foot wingspan can collapse more comfortably on his back. "There's a new guy in town," he says and I stiffen. "Can you believe it? Actually someone new for a change." "In town....like in the Market?" I ask to…