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Finding Home

A Hero's Journey

By Kate SutherlandPublished 3 years ago 2 min read
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(Image by Jplenio from Pixabay)

There is a light in the distance—can you see it?

Shining from behind those trees

silhouetting them to blackness,

their shadows fall towards me,

ripple over uneven ground to reach my feet.

Will you walk with me as I stumble through the darkness?

Hold my hand if you have walked this path before.

My bare heels press deeply into cold clay

I splay my toes for balance,

root in so I won’t fall.

Will you remind me to keep walking so I don’t sink here?

When I shift my gaze, the light is gone.

Tie a ribbon around my eyes

to keep them from seeking comfort.

Surrender into blindness;

what is familiar lies behind.

Still, trust the light is there.

Somewhere.

Here there is a boat that needs a river.

The oars look strong,

wait patiently.

It is by this shore I leave you;

for now I must continue on my own.

One tear escapes,

and then another,

then there’s a rivulet streaming thinly down each cheek.

Tributaries meet at the bottom of my chin,

and then they fall,

drip, drip,

upon the dry waiting bed—

my Life River needing water

and these tears of grief,

to flow.

The stream widens—

I’m cracking open—

and the boat shifts.

I feel my way aboard,

groping hands and fingers firmly grabbing hold.

As I sit in my journey

this vessel I inhabit re-learns to move,

abandons stagnancy.

Now the water’s raging,

and I may not last the torrents of my vicious ride,

all these waves of pain and healing.

I creak, and groan, and yet find I’m made of willow,

bending, yielding, and unwilling to break,

rebounding stronger to my hardening shape.

I am exhausted.

And yet I find I can endure.

The storm, unleashing floods,

comes to know this:

I will outlast the assault of my wounds as they surface.

I will look them in the eye and say, "I know you,

I accept you. You've made me broken, and more beautiful.

I release you."

My wells are deep.

I am stronger!

I shall keep dancing in the rain.

Knowing it is beaten,

Darkness breaks, gives way to sunlight.

I am washed now in my freedom,

nearly too bright for my eyes, reborn.

Fresh tears now—but these are different.

These are Joy.

This is the light I saw,

and I am within it.

It is pouring from my own grateful heart.

It has been here all along.

Will you meet me here, now,

Where I can truly see you?

inspirational
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About the Creator

Kate Sutherland

Kate is a Song-writer, an Artist, and a Kung Fu Teacher. She loves exploring a multitude of creative paths, and finds joy in inspiring others to do the same.

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