Resilience

.

It’s okay to be afraid.

To stand at the edge

and look out into darkness,

not knowing if the next step

will save you,

or be damned.

You might think you can fly.

You might pray you’ll fall.

You might want

to turn around

and not take that step at all.

Life is all the lessons

that we learn from our mistakes.

There is only one transgression;

don’t break.

Further down,

the habit and the hole.

Losing everything.

Losing control.

There is nothing at the bottom,

but scarred and wretched souls,

all looking for something to make them whole.

Light shines in the darkness,

only once in a while,

and it takes some strength to see it

and not miss it when it shines.

There are a myriad of bad choices

that any one of us can make,

but there’s always that one hope;

don’t break.

Life will seize upon you in the night.

Even those rare people who choose right,

can see the weight of choices building up,

until they’re too much to bear.

The truth is,

we’re never aware.

Of how much we can carry.

Of how long we can fight.

How long we can stand

against the darkness,

in the light,

while keeping the horizon in our sight.

Life brings us our bounty,

sometimes more than we can take,

but there is only one key to survival;

don’t break.

The fear will pass,

and the enemy is often

not what they appear.

Only on the other side of night

is morning clear.

The darkest heart of lust and envy

can have a grip,

but it is us that hold on tight to it.

We can release our hold,

long enough to slip

away into the light,

even just for one minute.

When all that we have taken on

threatens to come down,

and all our battles lost,

knowing every failure,

knowing every cost.

There’s so much stacked against us,

but there’s so much at stake,

so please,

stand strong,

and don’t break.

.

.

DJR – 2020