Next Time

paper white skin & fragile bones,
she tried desperately to stand.
the satin of her white slippers fraying,
loose strands of hair tickling her face.
balance eluded her each time.
memory of the basic skill gone,
like a handicap.
like an amnesiac,
she simply lost the ability to recall
not just the basics of the skill itself,
but that the balancing act was even possible.
that she would ever be able to stand,
let alone walk on the rope.
that the combination of her anatomy
and the rope
had the innate capability of performing this act together.
she tried so hard to remember.
after each time, she tried to remind herself.
as if this knowledge would somehow comfort her during her time of suffering.
as if it would ease her mind,
the knowing that it would come back.
knowing that she would find the rope again.
that her fraying shoes would somehow hold her,
that she did not need the net below.
that all she needed was faith.
if only she could somehow remember next time...