I inhaled
It felt as though
I was breathing in sulphur
I exhaled and ached
Forever

I pondered the elusiveness of hope
How what remains of it
Flickers and fades
Always
I witnessed the castle
I built in the air disintegrate
Into a million particles of matter
Dreams do turn into dust

Swirling in a vortex
Of hopelessness and discontent
I cannot free myself from
In the centre of something mightier than who or what
I could ever be in any lifetime
I questioned the incomprehensible nature of life
And how I lost reason
In my feverish chase for excellence

I reached the finish line
Of an arduous journey
The applaud ceased
Eventually
Then everything
Was riddled with silence
I wept.