Life is reaching for the next level. From the bottom, the view isn't always clear and free of dangers. We reach our foot out to the first stepping stone barely taking a hold of it with the tip of the toe. The clay and matter from the Earth beneath our feet squeeze through, the same as the mud does between our fingers that try to take a firm grip of the next plateau. We don't enjoy the trek much of the times, but know it is worthwhile to get to where we see ourselves.
The strength in our forearms is limited due to the inactivity of them, but we quickly realize that this work is what makes them stronger. We see that the simple effort of this work is what makes our muscles flex and our nerves come to the point of combustion, but we still hold on. The weight of the sidewalls is slowly starting to rain down onto our faces but there is enough light present that we still see the future of where we will be if we don't give in. The climb is tedious and strenuous but worthwhile in the end.
Days, weeks, months, years, and decades crawl by as we cling to the outer walls of our life. All while keeping our head and eyes to the skies above; All while fighting to keep ourselves up to the point we have gotten to; All while knowing that the time of dedication and work will pay off in the end once we are out of this hole. We climb on.
We get to a midpoint in the cavern that we are able to take refuge and celebrate for the achievement of reaching the point we have. We bask in the pride of accomplishment so much that many that get to this point end it here and sleep until the hole closes in on us. Many of us, on the other hand, are never satisfied with this mere feat. We see this point as just a resting point to getting to where we see ourselves, at the top. So we climb on. Cling back onto the same wall that has given us so much grief and strain. Our muscles have bulged to the point of not remembering when we had trouble holding on before. Now we are stronger. Now we climb with a stronger sense of purpose.
The beautiful view is still often diluted with sand, mud, and rock that fall upon our face while we climb. But we have long ago learned to see through these obstacles. We have learned many moons before not to let these temporary setbacks stop us from our target, that beautiful scenery we dream about. So we still climb on.
The seasons seem to be against us as we cling to the walls of this hole absorbing all the rain, snow, and heat that we can stand. Our skin has become as thick as an oak tree, withstanding all the perils that are seemingly thrown our way. The callus of our fingertips and feet are testament to the work ethic we have toward our goal. We continually climb on.
As our hand finally reaches the apex of this eternal hole, we glance back on what we have accomplished. We see a myriad of obstacles that we made it through. We marvel at our own strength. We hold our head higher with pride as we pull our aching and sore body through the top.
Then, as we are swimming in the enjoyment of the sun, and absorbing this experience of being more free than we have ever felt before, we notice the shimmer of a string. We have never seen this before. We have always been occupied in other matters, that this simple string attached firmly to our bodies was never noticed. As we trace the origins of the string, we follow it right to the source of the light that we have been following all our lives. We cannot free the string from the grip of the being that is behind the giver of the light. Then we finally see and realize, we never were in danger of falling in the first place. We never had a care in the world and the string gave us extra lift and pulled us through situations in the hole that we weren't even aware of. We were never in a situation that we were unable to handle because the support we had was unseen all along.
This support we had is what drove us to climb out of the hole and at the same time is what pulled us through situations that we didn't have the strength to do ourselves. We were and are never alone. There is always a support for us. Whether in the hole with us, or pulling our strings from beyond the light that we all are aiming to reach.
Our view was distorted by the agony of the challenge we were forced to make. We were never to make that journey alone, and we didn't ... and never will
