Mountain Road

Steep mountain road, a dormant, sleeping serpent,
lies prone between the stark and jagged cliffs.
It slumbers, trapped, but wholly unrepentant,
marked only by the pictographs and glyphs
that warn the traveler of impending danger,
a hairpin or an avalanche, a deer;
a set of skidmarks where a careless stranger
neglected shifting to a lower gear.
Oh, this snake bites, its every curve a warning,
but it is far too late, you cannot stop.
So you press on, and hope to welcome morning,
best viewed when at the very mountaintop.

Awash in early light, you feel a chill.
From here on out the journey is downhill.