Journey

Many paths weave life’s tapestry

each easy to walk absently

guided by others design.

I thought I wanted conformity

until the enormity

of life’s banality

blasted upon me

like a giant neon sign.

The road less travelled was frosty

full of uncertainties

doubts about ability,

about emotional maturity

muddied my choice.

People often say “You’re brave”

so much so

it becomes a triviality

echoing superficiality

reflecting their mindless normality

showing only the limits of their totality

each day passing by

in the same atonal voice.

I thought my route not brave at all

a compromise

in my eyes

representing

a failure to take chances

no daring strides or advances

oftimes stuck in circumstances

outside of my sway.

With Capricorn in the ascendant

I strode forth resplendent

developing independence

passed down from my descendants

in ancestral DNA.

I travelled far and wide

facing fire and tide

I never tried to hide

from experiencing hospitality,

embracing diversity

around the globe .

I travelled hopefully

Never letting objectivity

accept the immorality

of social marginality

of political impartiality

always continued to probe.

As I’m watching the finality

of other’s in their frailty

I realise with humility

the final steps are drawn

for everyone

not in summation

but in steady decline and negation

a total elimination

of the force which made us strong.

Hoping for a departure with dignity

without too much volatility

nor the needless litany

from an unwanted priest.

But a silent misty destiny

of willowy sleep and peace.

© Sheila Ash 2^nd July 2017