230 STAIRS

I never expected to hear myself saying
That I wish I could climb 230 stairs.
I never expected to hear myself saying
That my morning starts with climbing 230 stairs.

But habits can change, discipline takes hold.
Now it’s too cold for walking, dangerously cold
The fourth straight day it has been this way.

And
Even though my morning now starts in a warm car
That brings me directly from home to the office
I hear myself whining, hoping that next week
my mornings will start with the upward imperative
Of getting to work as I did last week,
Climbing 230 stairs.