on june 23, 2013,
one of the flying wallendas
crossed the grand canyon
on a tightrope,
fifteen-hundred feet
above the river
running along the bottom.
on may 24, 2021,
a frenchman took a
twenty-two-hundred-meter
walk on the highwire
to mont saint-michel,
writing, over two hours,
a new world record.
and on july 7, 2022,
four germans tiptoed
barefoot across a
valley in sweden,
suspended 600 meters
in the air between
two mountains.
our mouths dropped open
as we cheered their
bravery, their daring,
their endurance—
look how far the
human spirit can go!
and yet how vast,
how uncrossable
is the distance
between me
and you.
