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The Hopeful Step
A steep to climb, to meet my lovelorn prowess
For years be-teased, now duly pride-shorn prowess!
Like giving up old instruments for new—
Old hill for new—a fresh-cloaked, back-borne prowess.
To reach the top a mere eight-hundred feet,
And nothing much!—this dewy, thread-worn prowess.
But folks that pass make light of such a stunt.
…With talk and jibe, “Let’s grab some popcorn,” prowess.
And switch by switch I hide to catch a breath
From college students’ sweat and limb-porn prowess.
Pretending it’s a deer see 'skance the slope
Which makes the test of Chris’s heap-scorn prowess.
For years be-teased, now duly pride-shorn prowess!
Like giving up old instruments for new—
Old hill for new—a fresh-cloaked, back-borne prowess.
To reach the top a mere eight-hundred feet,
And nothing much!—this dewy, thread-worn prowess.
But folks that pass make light of such a stunt.
…With talk and jibe, “Let’s grab some popcorn,” prowess.
And switch by switch I hide to catch a breath
From college students’ sweat and limb-porn prowess.
Pretending it’s a deer see 'skance the slope
Which makes the test of Chris’s heap-scorn prowess.
Everything about this went over my head. Was "steep" in the first line supposed to be "step"? As near as I can figure, someone's carrying something up a hill and has become somewhat of a spectacle to those watching, but I don't know what he's carrying or why. The last line of each stanza has a rhyme on the second-last word, but I don't know what "prowess" is doing there. In the first stanza, I was on board with it being female rhyme, but then the rest of the stanzas trim that extra syllable from the first line only, and I can't figure out what the structure is supposed to be, or what "prowess" even means in this context.
No idea what's going on here from the narrative side or the structural side.
No idea what's going on here from the narrative side or the structural side.
I was thinking of a disabled student climbing to the school roof when reading this.
But even though that image popped into my head it doesn't really feel connected to the poem as a whole, only a few select words here and there.
As a whole I don't get what's going on. I'm not even sure if all the words here are the one's I'm supposed to read. Is the "steep" in the first line meant to be a "step"? Did typos sneak in or did you place typos deliberately? At this point I'll believe pretty much anythying.
But even though that image popped into my head it doesn't really feel connected to the poem as a whole, only a few select words here and there.
As a whole I don't get what's going on. I'm not even sure if all the words here are the one's I'm supposed to read. Is the "steep" in the first line meant to be a "step"? Did typos sneak in or did you place typos deliberately? At this point I'll believe pretty much anythying.
If it based on a real person's struggle, I'd love to know more about the story behind this
And why people confused by 'steep'? Steep is a slope, it is plain as it can be. Seriously. 😒
And why people confused by 'steep'? Steep is a slope, it is plain as it can be. Seriously. 😒
>>Forcalor
Not really a slope, no. More of a cliff, but that's also well down the list of definitions people will know. I've never heard it used this way.
You're going to use a very nonstandard definition for a very ordinary word where the context is unclear, be prepared for it to be misunderstood.
Not really a slope, no. More of a cliff, but that's also well down the list of definitions people will know. I've never heard it used this way.
You're going to use a very nonstandard definition for a very ordinary word where the context is unclear, be prepared for it to be misunderstood.