Spiral Staircase



At the top
Of a twisted staircase
Looking down
At the bottom step

The first step I take
I feel the tension rise
My toes cringe
My hands clam
My mind
A broken flashlight

Down another step I go
And I feel a rush
Through my veins

That person
I always avoided
Is now haunting
Me

I hurt her deeply
Thoughtless words
Stabbing knives
I punctured her stability

Half way down
My body has calmed
Stopping on that middle step
I take a seat
With a breath
Continuing down
The spiral steps

Third to last step
I look behind
How far I came
Braver than I thought

Why dwell on
That very first step
It's all behind me
Said and done

This is it
I reached the bottom
I smiled and thought
Well done

I climbed my mountains
And yes it was hard
But with effort
And fearlessness
I won

About this poem

This poem is about self discovery through the chaos and imperfections. Without allowing oneself to get in the way.

Font size:
Collection  PDF     
 

Written on November 03, 2023

Submitted on November 03, 2023

51 sec read
59

Quick analysis:

Scheme XABC XXXXDX XXX EXXF FXXF BXCXXBX CDXG XCFE XXGE XXXAE
Closest metre Iambic dimeter
Characters 778
Words 171
Stanzas 10
Stanza Lengths 4, 6, 3, 4, 4, 7, 4, 4, 4, 5

Sarah Brower

 · 1995 · New Jersey

I love to express myself through poetry. I can’t force inspiration so I only write when I feel moved. Authenticity is important to me!! If I can make anyone feel heard and understood, Then my goal is accomplished. more…

All Sarah Brower poems | Sarah Brower Books

4 fans

Discuss the poem Spiral Staircase with the community...

1 Comment
  • emergentauthor
    This is one of the most unique poems I've ever read. I love the use of metaphor and figurative language throughout the poem with the hurtful words being represented as "stabbing knives" and "puncturing" someone else's confidence. The "broken flashlight" metaphor was also very clever. This poem was well crafted, and I can see the care taken in every step of its design just like each stanza in the poem feels like a literal step down the spiral staircase of the mountain that the speaker of the poem was trying to carefully dismount. I love the way the poem starts-how top is in the first line and bottom is in the bottom line of the first stanza, very clever. This poem was also very positive. I like the idea of a poem being like a journey from one spot to another for the reader; it should take the reader places. And this poem is a metaphorical representation of that idea in a way, with the focus being on the journey of this person's life, which had ups and downs, and was clearly not perfect, but the speaker of the poem was able to overcome the struggle in his or her life and reach the destination. I love the fact that there is no punctuation and the choppy line breaks and shortness of each line make the reader feel vertigo and tense just like the speaker of the poem. Love how the whole poem's spiral staircase only represents one, single mountain in the person's journey, and then you realize when you get to the bottom w 
    LikeReply11 months ago

Translation

Find a translation for this poem in other languages:

Select another language:

  • - Select -
  • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
  • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • Esperanto (Esperanto)
  • 日本語 (Japanese)
  • Português (Portuguese)
  • Deutsch (German)
  • العربية (Arabic)
  • Français (French)
  • Русский (Russian)
  • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • עברית (Hebrew)
  • Gaeilge (Irish)
  • Українська (Ukrainian)
  • اردو (Urdu)
  • Magyar (Hungarian)
  • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
  • Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Italiano (Italian)
  • தமிழ் (Tamil)
  • Türkçe (Turkish)
  • తెలుగు (Telugu)
  • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
  • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
  • Čeština (Czech)
  • Polski (Polish)
  • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Românește (Romanian)
  • Nederlands (Dutch)
  • Ελληνικά (Greek)
  • Latinum (Latin)
  • Svenska (Swedish)
  • Dansk (Danish)
  • Suomi (Finnish)
  • فارسی (Persian)
  • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
  • հայերեն (Armenian)
  • Norsk (Norwegian)
  • English (English)

Citation

Use the citation below to add this poem to your bibliography:

Style:MLAChicagoAPA

"Spiral Staircase" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 22 Nov. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/175572/spiral-staircase>.

Become a member!

Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

November 2024

Poetry Contest

Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
8
days
19
hours
7
minutes

Special Program

Earn Rewards!

Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

Quiz

Are you a poetry master?

»
How many lines does a sonnet have?
A 14
B 16
C 12
D 18