Suspension

By Rachel Lightfoot

Suspension is like a half truth,
Caught somewhere between

The hard edge of honesty,
And the softness of a lie.

Frozen in outer space,
As breadcrumbs orbit,
Forever displaced.

I recognise this place,
I've been here before
Wounded and disgraced.

It's different now though,
I grew feathers from scars,
Studied the half in’s
And half out’s,
And noted the ones
Who always leave the door ajar.

I learned how to slip free from the noose,
And to recognize the importance of lies
When digging for truths.

I twisted my spine into steel
Broke the vertebrae,
In order to feel.

Taught myself how to heal,
From all of the burdens shouldered
In the pursuit of something real.

And from my broken back
Pinions grew strong,
Carried me along.

So you see,
I no longer need to dangle
At someone else's angle,
I've decided to release
The tension
From this suspension.

I'm going to
Leave this place,
Make my journey back
from outer space.

I cannot stay within your orbit,
Instead I'll wrestle all the stars,
Rip open the atmosphere,
And leave Phobos and Deimos
To dance desperately around Mars.

The time has now come
for me to say 'goodbye',
These wings are too extensive,
They command me to fly.

Rachel Lightfoot is an Arts Council funded poet with a dark sense of humor and a passion for creative self-expression. Rachel is no stranger to the Arts, at age 21, she acquired a degree in Film & Literature, and went on to build her very own burlesque empire. Here, she successfully wrote, produced, cast & performed in her own cabaret for eight years, coaching and encouraging other women along the way. After a brief stint working for ‘the man’, Rachel decided she did not like this and went on to chase her creative dreams once again. Now pursuing poetry and acting, Rachel spends her time creating short works of poetry inspired by her life experiences. She has also landed roles in various indie and short film productions around the UK.