Intention

there is a ladder

and a thousand steps of shame

did we really have to fall?

were we ever really lame?

a motion-picture photograph

the girl behind the camera

smiles

as you climb 

back 

into 

the frame

Author's Note

One from writer's group this morning. I edited it down, maybe it's better for brevity...

Reviews

[Betty Hermelee]

I love the use of your "there is a ladder and a thousand steps of shame....ouch!! painful and embarrassing! climbing back up again is you claim to fame...even without a photographer.... great use of language...really enjoyed this one...
Warmly, B

[John Sullivan]

Thanks so much Betty! Always a pleasure

[Betty Hermelee]

You're very welcome John
Warmly, B

[FPW]

Any walk or climb of shame is excruciatingly painful. Many times that frame remains impossible to breach and there is no smiling photographer awaiting our entrance. It’s lovely to see that there is a smile to greet your emergence. Hope and salvation remains alive. Your words give hope to those bleeding hearts.

[John Sullivan]

So kind, Felicia! Thank you for reading

[Chris Shaw]

Hello John. That’s a mighty long way to fall, but good to know that the climb back is well under way. A visual and positive piece of brevity.

Chris

[John Sullivan]

Thanks Chris! It's one day at a time, but I am of the opinion that things get better so long as we put in the effort. Always a pleasure

[jacob erin-cilberto]

I think there must be a lot of commercials during the motion picture of my life.
I got out of the frame all too often.
This is really clever...you always climb the ladder of perfection with your plays on words and metaphors.
j.

[John Sullivan]

Thank you so much Jacob, those are kind words from the Cafe MVP himself... You are and continue to be an inspiration friend, thanks for stopping by

[Ken Simm.]

Short but comples. I see a failed relationship. But I may be wrong. Excellent nontheless.

[John Sullivan]

There was a young lady in mind, and as it goes it didn't work out... but that's life! Thanks for reading, Ken

[John the Baptist]

Brevity is usually good. This one made me thing of the old saying "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." Yes, and after we screw up, there is the ritual beating up on ourselves. We usually do get back into the frame, but only after the mandatory auto flagellation has been completed. And of course there will be reruns until we come to understand why we're putting ourselves through this ordeal.

[John Sullivan]

I'm starting to like the shorter version of this one.

Like David Bowie once wrote...

"Those kilometers and the red lights
I was always looking left and right
Oh, but I'm always crashing
In the same car..."

[John the Baptist]

I am my wife's second favorite man, after Bowie.

[Thomas W Case]

I like the ambiguity here John. Great job.

[John Sullivan]

Thanks so much Tom!

[Soren]

When I thought of the ladder and the motion picture camera I thought of the old film that looks almost like a ladder as it passes frame by frame.

[John Sullivan]

That's a really fine image... thanks Soren!

[Stella Armour]

sounds like someone is smiling taking pictures of you getting back up to normality again...

[John Sullivan]

These days are good, Stella. Thanks for reading!

[Stella Armour]

always a pleasure ..

[Davidgeo]

I just watched some random youtube video about the paradox of time and this poem seems to describe an interesting part of that. I don't know if that was your intention or not, I rarely know what anyone's poems are actually about to be honest.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwSzpaTHyS8

[John Sullivan]

That's... a fascinating video. Not entirely sure what I was on about either... thanks for reading tho!

[Davidgeo]

The passage of time might be an illusion!!! Every moment might be a tiny picture that was already "painted" but we experience time in such a seemingly "frame less" way our brain's are totally deluded into thinking we have free will when it may be the case that we just have consciousness, the power to observe... free will on a large scale is (according to some anyway) an illusion... we're really just watching a "movie" unfold and we are all suffering from main character syndrome. I don't actually believe that but, it's an interesting thought because technically, it's not exactly wrong.... just probably the result of not fully understanding physical reality.

[John Sullivan]

The Trafalmadorians would agree (Vonnegut fan?)

[Davidgeo]

I'd like to think we've all got a little Billy Pilgrim in us.

Yes, definitely a Vonnegut fan.