To sit on top of a Table

To sit on top of a Table

Standing there above the city, towering over the streets

There is a table that is awe inspiring

That stands for beauty but also of fears

And will provoke different emotions for everyone who tries to climb on top of it.

I was daunted even before I caught sight.

I knew my challenge was to get to the top, but I somehow thought

There might be an easy route - there is a cable car

But alas, I wasn’t allow to use the electronic way.

It was love and hate at first sight

The beautiful Table Mountain stands proud in my beloved Cape Town

To see her had taken the biggest journey of my life

Climbing her would be another story all together.

From the first ten minutes, I knew she wasn’t going to be kind

Was I fit enough - yes but I wasn’t tall enough.

I scramble up the rocks like a tin robot trying to stay on dry land.

The sun beating down in harmony with my heart beat.

Everything about me was put to test - all my demons, all my angels

Had to work together to keep myself going up.

I knew I had to work in short minutes as the hours went by

I had to let go and embrace all my fears if I was going to survive.

At points I couldn’t even look behind me, I knew why -

Everything before Table Mountain pointed to the girl who couldn’t do this.

And everything in front was the life I had only dare to dream on raining days.

And in my hearts were the faces of friends cheering me on - the ones who never doubted.

Their belief filled my muscles with strength, my head with determination.

And together with the help and a hand of a beautiful stranger

I climbed my mountain, leaving demons behind, with my three up, two up routine.

I stood at the top and realise there was no going back to the girl I used to be.

What do you do when you get to sit on top of the Table - I drank Redbush Tea

And ate home made sandwiches under the protection of a tree

A unforgettable picnic in the most beautiful place in the world.

And then, of course, we had to climb back down.

Julia Boxer, 26-05-08