Keep the Faith
Hold On.
You work so hard to get up, climbing every rung and feeling euphoria as you almost reach the top. There are people at the bottom of the ladder, holding onto it and staring up, admiring the way you rapidly climbed so high with such agility. These people admire you. They want to be you, and in your head you find that strange.
Why on earth would anyone want to be like you? Don’t they see you properly? Don’t they see the way you’ve crumbled, you’ve strived, you’ve given everything to be where you are?
Well no. Of course they don’t. All they see is the simplicity of your actions. They don’t see the struggle, the hard-work that it’s taken you to reach this high. They don’t see what you see. They see what they want.
But then one of them spots your problem; the way you struggled to go any higher. When you decided that you needed to change because soon this rung can’t hold you any longer. You just wait. You wait for them to notice and speculate. You wait for them to shake you, unnerving you, making you fall.
They’re the reason you’re here, yet they’re the reason it could end.
In your head you see them as selfish. You’ve got everything you want up here and more. You’re life needs to be changed for the better, yet they still are selfish. They call you by a name; a name you believe you’ve been wrongly given.
Hero.
Because in your opinion you’re not a hero. You’re just like everybody else. You slip up, you make mistakes, you’re not perfect and you certainly don’t have everything that makes a hero. You’re not Batman. You don’t save peoples lives, not literally anyway.
Slowly, as they walk away from your ladder you start to stumble. You’re scared because if one more person lets go, if one more person looses faith, you’re gone.
“No!” You scream. “No! Where are you going?! What have I done?!”
At first you get no reply. You cling on desperately, waiting as the wind blows chills down your spine. Then one girl, small, black and blonde hair and bright green eyes shouts up: “They don’t believe in you anymore.”
There’s no denying that that didn’t hurt. “Ask them why they’re leaving me!” You cry. “Ask them why!”
So you watch on as the girl turns and asks them. Numerous boys and girls glance up at you, a cold look in their eyes. You feel disheartened. You gave them everything you could. You handed yourself over, raw for them to see, and yet they take that and chuck it back in your face. Listening intently you hear what they tell the girl…
“He’s a liar.”
“He’s not the same.”
“He’s gone mainstream.”
“I bet he’s back on drugs.”
“He should have married me!”
You roll your eyes, annoyed by what you’re hearing. These people, the same people that had once called you their hero were now turning and walking away. These people, that you needed to carry on, that you needed to keep the message of hope going were leaving you. In a sense it was ironic, because you lost hope as well.
You begin to cry, because you can’t take this anymore. Those people that you thought loved you so much, that you’d given everything to, just walked away. No remorse. No care in the world. They’d gone to find some other favourite band - to leave you hanging there, waiting.
But that girl didn’t leave. You begin to wonder why she hasn’t lost faith in you. After all, everyone else has. What makes her any different? Surely she gets too much stick for liking you now you’re ‘mainstream’, now you’re a ‘liar’ and a ‘drug addict’.
“I’m not a hero!” You scream, hoping those who have started to walk away will come back. “I’m just a person! I have flaws! I have problems! This is me! I haven’t changed! I’m still him! It’s selfish that you want me to be the way I used to!”
You close your eyes as the hot tears dribble down your face. You’re sick of this. Sick and tired. Something makes you open your eyes and look down. You’re surrounded again, all these people looking up at you. Occasionally glancing at the people walking away.
“Keep the faith!” One girl shouts.
And the others begin to follow. You know you can rely on them, because deep down you know that you have to rely on them. You tears stop. You feel so weak, but they’re still there, to support you. At that, you can’t help but smile.
People begin to return, saying how sorry they are that they ever doubted you. Your forgiving nature welcomes them back with open arms. They’ve admitted their mistake, so in your opinion they should be given a second chance.
Because they make mistakes, just like you. You’re only human. Just like them.
Yet all it took, was one or two people to keep the faith.
Why on earth would anyone want to be like you? Don’t they see you properly? Don’t they see the way you’ve crumbled, you’ve strived, you’ve given everything to be where you are?
Well no. Of course they don’t. All they see is the simplicity of your actions. They don’t see the struggle, the hard-work that it’s taken you to reach this high. They don’t see what you see. They see what they want.
But then one of them spots your problem; the way you struggled to go any higher. When you decided that you needed to change because soon this rung can’t hold you any longer. You just wait. You wait for them to notice and speculate. You wait for them to shake you, unnerving you, making you fall.
They’re the reason you’re here, yet they’re the reason it could end.
In your head you see them as selfish. You’ve got everything you want up here and more. You’re life needs to be changed for the better, yet they still are selfish. They call you by a name; a name you believe you’ve been wrongly given.
Hero.
Because in your opinion you’re not a hero. You’re just like everybody else. You slip up, you make mistakes, you’re not perfect and you certainly don’t have everything that makes a hero. You’re not Batman. You don’t save peoples lives, not literally anyway.
Slowly, as they walk away from your ladder you start to stumble. You’re scared because if one more person lets go, if one more person looses faith, you’re gone.
“No!” You scream. “No! Where are you going?! What have I done?!”
At first you get no reply. You cling on desperately, waiting as the wind blows chills down your spine. Then one girl, small, black and blonde hair and bright green eyes shouts up: “They don’t believe in you anymore.”
There’s no denying that that didn’t hurt. “Ask them why they’re leaving me!” You cry. “Ask them why!”
So you watch on as the girl turns and asks them. Numerous boys and girls glance up at you, a cold look in their eyes. You feel disheartened. You gave them everything you could. You handed yourself over, raw for them to see, and yet they take that and chuck it back in your face. Listening intently you hear what they tell the girl…
“He’s a liar.”
“He’s not the same.”
“He’s gone mainstream.”
“I bet he’s back on drugs.”
“He should have married me!”
You roll your eyes, annoyed by what you’re hearing. These people, the same people that had once called you their hero were now turning and walking away. These people, that you needed to carry on, that you needed to keep the message of hope going were leaving you. In a sense it was ironic, because you lost hope as well.
You begin to cry, because you can’t take this anymore. Those people that you thought loved you so much, that you’d given everything to, just walked away. No remorse. No care in the world. They’d gone to find some other favourite band - to leave you hanging there, waiting.
But that girl didn’t leave. You begin to wonder why she hasn’t lost faith in you. After all, everyone else has. What makes her any different? Surely she gets too much stick for liking you now you’re ‘mainstream’, now you’re a ‘liar’ and a ‘drug addict’.
“I’m not a hero!” You scream, hoping those who have started to walk away will come back. “I’m just a person! I have flaws! I have problems! This is me! I haven’t changed! I’m still him! It’s selfish that you want me to be the way I used to!”
You close your eyes as the hot tears dribble down your face. You’re sick of this. Sick and tired. Something makes you open your eyes and look down. You’re surrounded again, all these people looking up at you. Occasionally glancing at the people walking away.
“Keep the faith!” One girl shouts.
And the others begin to follow. You know you can rely on them, because deep down you know that you have to rely on them. You tears stop. You feel so weak, but they’re still there, to support you. At that, you can’t help but smile.
People begin to return, saying how sorry they are that they ever doubted you. Your forgiving nature welcomes them back with open arms. They’ve admitted their mistake, so in your opinion they should be given a second chance.
Because they make mistakes, just like you. You’re only human. Just like them.
Yet all it took, was one or two people to keep the faith.