Crumbling
I guess that best describes
The condition of my life
If anyone really looked
My friends
And they truly are my friends
Missed it as they walked about
Around and through my life
There was no malice
There was no neglect
There was no forethought
None of this was their intent
It is merely
The busyness of every life
The care and concerns
The day to day of living
And still
I crumbling stand
In the midst of it all
Feeling alone in the crowd
To say
You walked in
Would be a misnomer
Speaking technically
You were always there
From the beginning
Until now
You have been at my side
You were there, waiting
Although again
Speaking strictly technically
You weren't actually waiting
You were walking
You were working
You were holding
You were supporting
Sometimes this load
The one I decided to carry
Caused me to sway
Under the burden unexpected
You kept me from falling
You provided invisible support
When my legs buckled
And my arms flailed
To others, or mostly myself
It seemed amazing
I didn't crumble
Looking back, it seemed miraculous
I felt the obligation
Gaining weight
Or I losing strength
Or fading in resolve
I can't give a timetable
Or tell you how long
I didn't count the steps
Or measure the distance
From a decision
To a light affliction
To a encumbrance
To the crushing millstone
I carried that day
I cried out
By reason of my fear
The ground beneath my feet
Seemed as a troubled sea
"Lord, save me"
The words
Driving from my soul
Nearly drowned out by weariness
You walked in
Your hand moved between
My seeming inescapable burden
And my crumbling life
For the first time
I felt a taste of freedom
Separated from my affliction
The weight from my birth
There are no adequate words
None can convey the joy
Like trying to describe
Taking your first breath
I sing now
Not the song of sorrow
But of a joy, unspeakable
Full of glory
I speak now
Not the words of death and dying
But the words of living and life
And that, more abundantly
I walk now
Not the walk of the slave
But the walk, not by sight
In a newness of life
I live now
Not in the darkness of shame
But I live in the light
Marvelously created
In Him
I live now
I move
I have my being
Not one part of my life
Was not changed
When I cried out
When You walked in
You walked in
Ron Simpson, Jr.
September 28, 2014
