The Ledge

Every day I:
- Pick up my ball and chain
- Leave the house that holds me back
- Drive to the city that wants to buy my soul
- Take the elevator to the umpteenth floor
- Sit at a desk that stands for everything I hate
 
And looking straight ahead from my computer driven dungeon, I see … The Ledge
The Ledge, that is thirty inches of concrete outside of an old time window
That is the only thing stopping one from falling to their death
 
I walk to the window every day
I open it, look down, and see the people below
Hustling and bustling to survive another day
I wonder what it is that makes them happy
 
Every day is the same heartless grind
Work hard so rich people get richer
I want to get out, I want to be happy
I just don’t know what happy is
 
But, today feels different
Something’s going to change
I just know I can’t take this anymore
Something will happen that will make me happy
 
From my desk I hear birds singing
I look up and see birds on the ledge
Their singing is the most beautiful sound
That I have ever heard
 
I go to the window, open it, and look out past the ledge
I see bright sunlight over the tops of mountains
There are forests at the bottom of the mountains
And a river that runs from the mountains to a large lake
 
On the shore of the lake there is a fishing boat
The fishing boat is at the end of a beautiful lawn
On the lawn there are deer and rabbits eating the grass
And they don’t have a care in the world
 
There is a rugged log cabin  
That looks like it is built to last forever
It has a big porch, and a hound is sleeping on it
I don’t know how, but I know his name is Eden
 
At my feet is a stream with clear, cold water
I have to cross the stream to get to the cabin
I take a step into the stream
I slip, and my head hits a rock in the stream
 
It was stupid of me to not have looked closer
Now I will have a headache the rest of the day
My clothes are wet, and I am cold
But now I know what happy feels like
 
As I walk to the cabin, Eden wakes up and runs to me
We are the best of friends
I see a sign by the door of the cabin that says Paradise
Of course, I always knew this was paradise
 
All I ever had to do was to go to the ledge  
And take the step that took me to Paradise