Learn the rope trick—
By all means possible.
To hell with the knots.
They just get in the way.
You’ll survive; trust me.
But never disclose the secret.
Keep it stashed away,
Where no fool can find it.
Whatever your intentions—
Whether lasso or noose—
They’re mere distractions,
Keeping you from success.
How you handle fate,
The moment it arrives,
Remains the only concern
You need to contemplate.
Still, practice day and night.
Let a bit of the cord unravel,
Strand by strand, if necessary.
After all, it’s only your life.

Bart Edelman’s poetry collections include Crossing the Hackensack (Prometheus Press), Under Damaris’ Dress (Lightning Publications), The Alphabet of Love (Red Hen Press), The Gentle Man (Red Hen Press), The Last Mojito (Red Hen Press), The Geographer’s Wife (Red Hen Press), Whistling to Trick the Wind (Meadowlark Press), and This Body Is Never at Rest: New and Selected Poems 1993 – 2023 (Meadowlark Press).  He has taught at Glendale College, where he edited Eclipse, a literary journal, and, most recently, in the MFA program at Antioch University, Los Angeles.  His work has been widely anthologized in textbooks published by City Lights Books, Etruscan Press, Fountainhead Press, Harcourt Brace, Longman, McGraw-Hill, Prentice Hall, Simon & Schuster, Thomson/Heinle, the University of Iowa Press, Wadsworth, and others. He lives in Pasadena, California.