climbing the mountain of life

grin

Tue, May 10 2011, 9:44 am

scorching heat, bitter cold
step after step I go
my knees scratched by stones
my heart in despair
I feel all alone

the mountain soars above me
forbidding and forlorn
the climb is so steep
too far, too long

I stumble and fall
will the end ever come?
I hesitate, I rest
too tired to go on.

then I saw you from afar
struggling, climbing
your own mountain
of pain and of trials

you raised your hand in greeting
and smiled, a tired sad smile
As you turned your head
to continue your climb

suddenly I felt no longer alone
the mountain less forlorn
although still a stranger
you gave me strength to go on.

[Feel free to critique.]

Hashemlovesme

Tue, May 10 2011, 11:34 am

I wrote this for one of my "girls" when I was a madricha.

mountain climbing is hard
no one says it's not
it's tedious
progress is so slow you sometimes don't realize you've made any
you sweat
& get tired
when you bang yourself it bruises
& hurts
when you lose your footing you slip
& grope for something
anything to hold onto

the last few yards are the most difficult
success seems just out of reach
but you find the strength to inch closer
determination overriding fatigue
pulling yourself over the edge with your last bit of strength

then you can breathe in the thin, clear air
marvel at the spanning view
& finally,
glance down at the enormous lapse
between you & your starting point.
take a moment to bask in the glory of accomplishment

(name),there are more mountains out there
higher & more steep than this one
or any you've ever encountered or even thought about
but you've got the equipment you need
you just have to realize it
& learn how to use them