Yourself, No Longer

Reflections on life's journey

A path. 

Any path.

 

Any c**k-eyed slip of the slope.

Rocky and thatched and webbed with enstrangling vinery.

That elusive journey taken toward

 

a moment. 

Any moment.

 

Any fleeting tick of the tock.

Blinding and shrill and creaking with soul-crushing constriction.

That fugitive time spent moving forward.

            When you reach the vanish of that path

            And stand at the bell-toll of that moment,

            unblinking, unbending, unwavering,

            on the threshold at the gatehouse of purpose

To travel onward, to look inward, to seek deeper,

is paradise found,

showering upon you the boundless courage

to be a stranger to yourself no longer.

 

• neil coleman april 2025