Musings of a Mongoose - 18. The Path of Perseverance

What does it mean to fight?

To take a breath, breaking free of the water

To refuse to be pulled down to death

To stare the enemy in the eye

To face his callous heart and intentioned hands

And struggle against the grip

What does it mean to survive?

To take a breath, and then another, gasping on the shore

To refuse to let the tide reclaim you

To stare at the ocean of sorrow, and know its depths

To face the crashing waves and suffocating memory

And strengthen your resolve with every heartbeat

What does it mean to endure?

To take a breath, to calm the rage and fear that surges in your bile

To refuse to let the ocean within overwhelm your senses

To stare toward the future path with grim determination

To face the difficult road knowing you have faced worse before

And stride forward from the wreckage of the voyage stolen, now reclaimed

What does it mean to live?

To take a breath at the turning in the road

To refuse to let the rain dampen your spirit

To stare down the one who tried to sink you

To face the demon in the deep who thought to claim your heart

And stab the motherfucker in the face

He doesn't own you.

You do.

Fuck playing by his rules.

That bastard tried to drown you.

You gonna take that shit?

Live. Prove him wrong.