Section One:
I Speak
Finding The Path
Darkness clouds my memory.
A long, winding road stretches before me,
A road whose rocks pierce my shoes
And rip into my soft, tender feet.
I pause to nurse my wounds
And the monster catches me.
I am thrown from the path.
My face and arms burn with ground-in gravel.
I stand shakily on unsure feet.
I see that the path is far away--
Miles of shredded glass span the distance.
Yet, a tree stands in the midst of the space
With branches that stretch easily to the path.
If I could only reach the tree...
But the way is long and the glass is sharp.
I look down at my shoes.
In disbelief, bare feet answer my gaze.
I take a deep breath to clear my mind
And then a cautious step.
The glass pierces my heel.
I smell the fresh blood that, in moments, bathes my foot.
A large piece of glass trips me.
I fall onto my hands.
Jagged strips of flesh are forever ripped away.
The open wounds gush crimson.
The tree is closer now, but my flesh is weak.
It tears upon every glass shard I encounter.
Bloody hands seek to wipe the sweat from my eyes.
Bits of glass in my fingers rip away my sight.
The world is a red sea and I am drowning.
My flailing arms brush against bark.
I find myself clinging to the tree.
A new strength fills my being and my sight is restored.
I climb the branch that will carry me back to the path.
The sharp stones have no effect
Upon the calloused feet I have earned.
As the darkness clears,
A ray of sunlight bathes me in peaceful radiance.
The walking is easier now.
Soul Strength
Oh, God, my strength,
I need You now.
I have always needed You,
But time causes forgetfulness
And I look to others
For the strength
Only found in You,
My Soul Strength.
Hold me.
Your arms, like steel,
Can keep out the pain;
It hammers me to my knees.
At times I cannot even breathe.
The sobs rip at unseen places
Deep within.
I am filled with pain
All because I put my trust
In a man,
Instead of looking to You.
This pain is my consequence,
As his pain at my heartache is his.
Lord lead us.
Give me peace and desire to trust in You.
Give him strength of will
And a desire to be Yours in all things.
For You are
Our Soul Strength.
How could we not need You?
He Comes
Darkness:
My friend,
The herald of my Lover.
It is only in you
That His Light can shine.
It is in the aloneness of your silence
That I can hear His voice.
You hide my tears.
When His arms are around my heart,
His comforting whispers
Carry on in your echoing fathoms.
It is only in you,
When I am alone,
That He comes,
Bringing peace
In His Light and Love
Through the dark.
DayDream
Nothing else matters
But Your love, Oh God.
Our dreams rob us of life
But Your dreams
Are Truth, Hope, and Eternity.
We only truly live
When we see through Your eyes.
When our hearts
Reflect Yours.
Save us from our nightmares,
So that in waking,
We may find new life
In the dawn of Your
DayDream.
The Mountain Faller
The mountain is high and towers above me.
I climb slowly, slipping on loose stones.
Each time I slip, I pick myself up
And try again. The cycle continues.
Each time, I slip dangerously closer
To the bottom where I first started the climb.
Pretty soon, I find myself on the ground,
Looking upward at the mountain,
Aching to climb.
But each step brings me sliding to the bottom
In an unexpected avalanche.
I look at my hands.
They are bloodied and oozing from the effort.
Standing there, looking up, I realize
That I can climb no more.
My strength just doesn't cut it.
And my heart is no longer in the climb.
I cry out to the blue expanse above,
"Don't let me quit!"
And then You are there.
You've come down the mountain to me.
You reach out a hand and smile.
"Come, let me help you."
I reach up in answer
And begin to climb once more.
And I realize that only with You
Can I get anywhere at all.
)
