On the Other Side of The Tall, Tall Wall

On the other side

Of the tall, tall wall

There is a tree

And under the tree

There is a note

And the note says--

You can rest here

So you do

As you rest

The sun goes down

And you forget

That you need

To go back

Over

The tall, tall wall

When you wake up

The tree is gone

So is the note

And the wall seems taller

Taller than it was

When you went over

The day before

But no matter how high

The wall has grown

You cannot stay here

Behind the tall, tall wall

The air is sweet

The birdsong sounds simple

The apples hang low

For you to grab

And gobble up

But this is not

Your side of the wall

So up and over

You go

On the the other side

Of the tall, tall wall

More than a day

Has passed by

In fact, years have traveled

And you have been forgotten

Cities sprung up

And sprung down

And the air is not sweet

And there are no apples

And you can’t hear birds

Or sounds that make you close your eyes

And let your shoulders go

Behind you the wall is still there

And so is the other side of it

But you don’t turn around
You don’t go back over

You tell yourself

You had your time

Over the tall, tall wall

You walk for miles

You look for things

You might remember

Or people who might

Remember you

So much has transformed

That even the sky seems unfamiliar

As does the languages spoken
And the clothes people wear

And the ways in which

You can see yourself

Existing in whatever this place is

But as strange as it may seem

You know

That this

Is your side of the wall

You’d love to return

To the other side

But this is the side you knew

And so that means

Somewhere

Buried deep

Is the side you know

You don’t know

The other side

You spent a day there

You fell asleep

You ate a few apples

You rested

But those things

Don’t make it

Your side of the wall

Do they?

You walk and walk

And look for a tree

Like the one you know

Is on the other side

Of the tall, tall wall

But there are none

Finally, when you’re so tired

You can barely move

And your feet ache

And your breath is short

You decide it’s time

To head back

To the wall

And try to scale it

With whatever strength

You have left

You can see it in the distance

But only a haze of a thing

As if it’s an illusion

As if it was never there

At all

That’s when you know

What you should have known

The moment you were

At the top of the wall

Looking at both sides

And deciding

That where you’re from

Was more important

Than where

You needed

To go