The opposite of vertigo

or, “Sydney, sea level”

opposite-of-vertigo
Photo found on Mark Holland’s Twitter @RiffRaff71, 2/2/2015.

The opposite of vertigo
Is your wings poised for flight
and your feet stuck in cement;
Is the skyward pull that makes
you ill to be on the ground.

Gravity versus your dreams.

The opposite of vertigo
Is conversations about the weather
and getting angry at traffic;
Is display windows taunting you
with things that won’t make you happy.

You can see right through them.

From the pit of your stomach
to the tip of your tongue
the air here’s thick,
swallows up inspiration.

The opposite of vertigo
Is the sickening sensation of settling;
Is being shackled when you should be airborne.

The opposite of vertigo
Is the curse of those who come down from altitude;
Is the Icarus in you and me.

Note: This piece is, in a way, a companion to Vértigo, which I wrote in July 2013 coming back from Ecuador. For those of you who read Spanish, I’ve reproduced it below.

Vértigo

Se llama vértigo
cuando, despegando de las alturas de tu amor,
mi corazón alcanza el cielo

Se llama vértigo
cuando, dejando atrás mi vida contigo,
veo que dejo también, esparcidos por esas montañas,
trozos de mi alma

Se llama vértigo
cuando, lanzándome a las nubes,
me doy cuenta de lo lejos que queda ya la tierra

Me doy cuenta de la distancia entre tú y yo
que va creciendo,
cada segundo otro kilómetro más –

Otro paso más hacia otro futuro.

 

Get new posts via email

Not a newsletter - just my blog posts on identity, culture and everyday life in your inbox 1-2 times a month.

............

.

share
tweet
email
share
share
3 comments

Join the conversation - let me know what you think

You May Also Like
Keep reading >

Pinch yourself and hit send

One my favourite simple pleasures in life is rediscovering songs from the 90s - and in particular, the one-hit wonders. My most recent nostalgia hit is Pinch Me by the Barenaked Ladies. Remember them? Yeah! Ten years ago to the day, I posted this brief status update to Facebook (in the third person - I guess that's how we did it back in the olden days). Intriguing! So ... what was my youth all about again?
Keep reading >

Clash or conform?

Culture clash? Thankfully, I haven’t really experienced culture clash as such. I think having travelled before has helped…
Keep reading >

Easter Peace-ster

I’ve never been one for fireworks. So when she went ballistic I shrunk and tried to zen myself…