the struggle

I’m in a dark room,
I feel heavy.
I feel,
Confused. Lost. Tortured. Beaten down.

I have weights,
Chains dangling from my body.
There’s stairs ahead,
Millions of huge steps.
I step up onto one,
Dragging the chains with me.
I climb another step,
Then another.
I can feel the weight,
The pain its causing me.
It causes me to be slow,
To struggle.
But I keep going,
Climbing one step after another.

I’m screaming,
In agony.
As I climb step by step,
I keep screaming out,
For the pain is too much to bear.
My eyes over flow with tears,
Stinging my eyes.
The chains,
Leave deep cuts and sores on my skin.

My arms and legs are sore,
I’m about to collapse.
I want to,
I want to stop.
I almost give up,
So I sit.
But only for a moment.
I stand right back up,
And continue to climb.

I’m a third way there,
And my muscles are screaming.
The weights are still there,
My body suffering great torment.
Then,
One chain falls off.
I feel lighter,
But the other chains remain.
So I start to climb again,
Still struggling under the weight.
Muscles,
Still in agony.

I reach another third of the steps,
I stop.
Another chain falls off,
I can move a little easier.
So I keep going,
A bit faster.
I struggle still,
Trying to reach the top.

I reach the final steps,
Climbing them steadily and carefully.
I step up to the last step,
And open the door in front of me.
I walk out,
And I’m blinded by sunlight.

I walk to the edge of,
What looks to be the roof of a skyscraper.
I look down,
And watch as the last of my chains,
Fall away from my body.

I take a deep sigh,
Look at the sky and smile.
I smile,
In victory.
I had made it,
I did it.
I open my arms wide and,
I feel so light,
So free.
I look down,
To the people down below.
I see children and adults walking,
Talking and laughing.
I giggle to myself,
And look behind me.

I see the chains that had fallen,
So I go to the door again.
I see the chains that had fallen,
Down the winding stairs.
I laugh,
And kick the chains on the roof,
Onto the stairs.
I then,
Close the door.
I walk away,
Never opening the door again.

I look back down,
At the people,
At the ground.
I sit on the ledge,
Leaning back on my hands and smiling at the sky.
I tell myself,
I did it,
I made it.
I’m,
On top of the world,
And I’m never going back.