Keep a relentless smile upon your face

As you brave the cold that you face – both within and without

Yes, I know that you can’t see the sun now, nor feel its warmth

And every step you seem to take feels wrong

What if I told you to hold on, no matter what?

Would you have faith in me when I ask you to stay?

For it may seem like the sky is falling down

And the world may seem to be against you

It may get harder with every move you make

But if you can, and only if you can

Believe me when I say that there is a rainbow

Just a little ahead upon the path you are on

I know it’s hard to believe when all you see around you is darkness

But you will smile again, and rejoice again

For all will happen just the way you want it – it always does

So hold on for now, and hold on good, for faith is all you need

I know I may not say it much, but I still want you to know

Just how much you mean to me, and how thankful I am

For everything you have thrown my way – the good, the bad, and everything in between

For never having left my side, even when my faith wore thin

There have been times, I can’t deny

When I have questioned your motives, and your offerings

But for all those times of doubt, you’ve always managed to prove me wrong

Reassuring me of all your good intentions

Gratitude that I may not always choose to express openly

I only wish you would know that it exists deep within me always

For you are but my maker, and for me, you will do no harm

Dear God, as yet another year goes by, and we prepare ourselves to face the next

I thank you for all lessons and experiences I have had so far

And I shall always believe in you, for everything you are to me

Destiny, I’m finally ready to take a step forward

After all this time spent in denial of your powers

I’m now willing to be led down the path you have planned for me

Come take my hand, for I wish that you guide me now

I assure you there will be no more resistance from me

Open to everything you have in store for me

Come rain, come hail, come sunshine

I wish to face all that life has to offer

And I wish to keep my eyes open, and my heart open too

From now, I choose not to live like the coward I’d been all along

And from now, more pages of my book of life will be filled

So many tales, so many words, so many moments await

Me and myself, and all the while it has taken to get us here

Still alive, still breathing, still smiling

So what if my heart still remains hollow

And I have no one’s hand to hold yet

My smile will not fade because of my loneliness

At least I feel like I’ve healed

The wounds, now a thing of the past

And from the peak that I now stand upon

All I see are endless blue skies

And a sea of possibilities that beckon me

Upon a ledge with outstretched arms, I stand and look down upon the world

The horizon shimmers silver, no dark clouds anywhere in sight

Once I sat upon this very ledge, many years ago, with legs dangling in the air

Held back only by my arms, the only thing that kept me in reality still

This dream recurs, the thought refusing to leave. No, it does not bring nightmares

A sense of calm descends, knowing I’d not done wrong back then

I now return to the memory of this ledge; there’s unfinished business here

An ode that I promised to someone, someone who once needed me, and I failed

The someone whom I climbed back over the ledge for, to who this life is owed

Silence is all I have for you, prayers deep within the heart for your soul

Hoping your eternal quest for silence has finally succeeded