Wallenda Sutra

Life’s on the wire;
The rest is waiting. I know
I’m alive when I

Hear no one breathing.
On the wire I’m living:
The wire is where

I’m sure where I stand
In the great chain of being.
The rest is dead air;

The rest is waiting.
When I’m out on the wire,
Beyond all wanting,

It’s clear that the rest
Of my life is sleepwalking.
Stadiums, gorges,

Standing room only—
That’s me in the viewfinder,
Making my living.

Life’s on the wire,
Where everything’s trembling;
The rest is nothing

But worry and care.
On the wire I’m at one
With all my past lives,

Treading the fine line
Between the worms and the stars.
The rest is stalling;

The rest is chafing.
Wherever there’s wires, that’s
Where I’ll be waiting.