Looking Before You Leap – Written Monday 20th October 1997 (Aged 22)

Looking Before You Leap

you get old –
and the nerves –
the ones you never used to have
suddenly appear
a perfect companion to fear
i used to fall out of tress
fall off walls
even the dettol on my grazed knees
never seemed to deter me
the hurt was there,
but i still carried on
i used to talk to anyone
i got through a lot of people
and it felt like everyone
still the hurt,
it never bothered me
i cane back for better or worse
now, i look before i leap
caution has a hold of me
and it will not let go
it knows the consequences
and it shows up my inadequacies
you get older –
and you may care less
but you become so much more aware
now before i jump
i don’t rush, i stop and i stare
knowing if i experience a fall
it will hurt and the hurt will bother me




James Garratt – Monday 20th October 1997


More poems at
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https://theboybehindtheglasses.com/2020/01/08/the-boy-behind-the-glasses-an-introduction/


More poems from 1997 here
https://theboybehindtheglasses.com/category/poems-and-writing-1997/