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author’s note:
Realism.
THE INVISIBLE BRIDGE
A wise one once told me
I’d eventually find a magical world
by walking down this path.
So I set off with great hope, vowing never to give up.
But after many years
filled with many thrilling trials
today, I encountered an obstacle
seemingly insurmountable:
I found myself at the edge of a steep cliff
with a deep dark chasm below.
I could see the path continued
on the far side of the gap—
the trail spiraled up a mountainside.
But how could I possibly cross?
I’d been told
not to deviate, but to stay on this track
and meet its challenges.
Had I been tricked?
Then a low voice unknown to me
echoed up from the depths of the canyon:
“The higher the cost, the greater the gift,”
the voice murmured.
“Try and you will find
a foot bridge before you—
its invisible ropes
and invisible boards
will support your weight.
To reach your magical place
you must cross this magical bridge.”
Though I demanded more information
my words fell into
a silent void.
The epitaphs of those who test reality
often tell us:
“He died a foolish death.”
But after walking this path for so long
I preferred to die like a fool
rather than go back, feeling defeated.
So I stuck out my foot
and searched around with my toes
until I felt something solid—
something like a board—
then I extended my hand
until I touched an unseen rope.
I’m not sure how much time has passed
since I took that first step.
I think now I must be at least halfway across.
But maybe not.
Unfortunately, curdles of fog came in
and hid everything—including the mountain.
Cloud has crept all the way up to my armpits—
maybe it’ll swallow me whole.
How long must this test go on!
I can’t stop my sensible knees from shaking—
they say to me:
Any moment you could slip.
Any moment you could trip.
Any moment you could fall and be lost forever.
But though I can’t make peace with my knees
I can still make peace in my head.
I’ve now decided
to love my decision—
I will, even if I fall—
all the way down
I will praise myself
for being willing to risk everything
on a magical trek of discovery.
How Can I Live In This World?: poetry book
dream steps blog
myth steps blog
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© 2026, Michael R. Patton
author’s note:
As they say in the movies: based on a true story.
CATCHING FOG
While walking to school
one childhood morning
I thought I could lose myself
in a fog cloud hovering
on the other side of the field.
But though I ran hard
I arrived to find
that thick cloud had fled
and when I turned, I saw
the mysterious vapor waiting
over there where I’d started.
So I raced back
but again that fog tricked me.
Hooked by my fantasy
I ran again—I ran
until
I finally had to stop
to get
my wind
back.
Only then did I feel
the burn of those wet wisps
deep inside my chest.
Satisfied that I’d caught some fog
I lifted my head and walked on
as the sun began to clear the cloud.
That childhood folly
later became a useful metaphor
when I needed to accept
what appeared to be the folly
of my adult life.
Consider the story:
for years
I raced here and there
and back again.
But no matter where I went
the imaginary heaven I sought
was never where I was.
Finally forced to stop
I felt I’d lost
until
I discovered I burned hot
with all that I had taken in.
After that realization
I lifted my head again
and saw that the fog had begun to thin
cleared by insight—
or
in the words of this metaphor-maker:
sharp rays of the morning’s sunlight.
Searching for my best beliefs: poetry book
dream steps blog
myth steps blog
you tube channel
© 2024, Michael R. Patton
author’s note:
Planning a vacation?
FABLE OF THE CLAM WHO OPENED
She left a note
for the old woman upstairs
saying:
don’t worry—
just wanted to realize the dream
of escaping to
a tropical island.
But as often happens to human clams
as she lay on the beach
the tide crept up and pulled her down—
down through the shallows
until she fell from the shelf
into that roiling murky bay bottom.
Frightened by the depth
she closed even more
which only increased the pressure—
the pressure that comes
when a clam clamps down on itself
and tries not to feel what it’s feeling.
No longer able to ignore the pressure
she realized she’d soon explode
if she didn’t let go.
And so she finally opened:
an action that brought her back to the beach—
she awoke shaken but stronger.
Many have shared their own version of this fable:
when we try to escape change
the better one within
may pull us down into an ordeal
that will only end when we end
our resistance.
Good to remember that moral.
But let’s also inscribe on our minds
the second part of the story:
In the following years
many in distress
crossed the path of our heroine
and when they sensed her openness
often responded
by opening to her
and as they gave themselves up
they released the pressure building within
and so, did not explode
but defused with a peaceful song:
wave upon wave of notes—
high and low, low and high.
33 1/3 New Fables & Myths
dream steps blog
myth steps blog
you tube channel
© 2024, Michael R. Patton
author’s note: Based on a true story? Kinda. STORY FROM A NIGHT STRANGER Consider this humble tale told to me by a stranger: while living alone in the country she opened her door one night to a silent explosion of light. By instinctive response she kicked the door shut then in an instant realized: she’d lost her chance. At what?--she wasn’t sure-- but something more than she’d ever known before. So she flung the door back open but of course saw only darkness deepening into the trees. Though she knows the opportunity will probably never return she’s also seen what can happen when you give up hope so every day she works to be ready-- she works to build strength by constantly trying to find the truth hidden within the cloud of noise in her brain. She works to build strength by delving deeper and deeper into the well of her mirror. She shares with others the light she finds in her foggy head in her dark depths. But I wanted my own light so I asked her how can I delve down? Teach me how to work. But she turned then and returned to the shadows. Her soft smile of parting said: I’ve learned the blessing of loss. The sharp gleam in her eye told me: I know you will find your own way. Yes-- I now know how to build strength. So maybe I’ll be ready should I ever open my door to a silent explosion of light.
Common Courage: poetry book
myth steps blog
dream steps blog
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© 2023, Michael R. Patton
Michael Patton
sky rope (subterranean rappel) 