The storm within...

Hope isn't something you rely on,

For the storm brewing ahead,

I can't help thinking about,

The strong winds,

The stronger waves,

Waiting to tear a peaceful journey apart.

Every morning I wake up,

And suddenly,

The sun seems brighter,

The birds more chirpy,

People more pleasant,

As if things just slowed down,

And the world,

A much more beautiful place,

The kind of beauty you miss,

When you assume you're going

To be here for eternity.

And then you walk up to the mirror,

You see a stranger staring back at you,

Shattered reflections,

And all of a sudden everything just comes back!

As you try to swim against the current,

Slipping away slowly,

To the darkness within!

You learn to smile at times like these,

Though you have a hundrer odd reasons

Not to,

And then you realize,

The world before you,

And the small glimpses of joy,

That you overlooked earlier,

So you sit down and observe it,

As if you were an outsider!

The pitter-patter of the raindrops,

The rustling leaves,

The gentle wind,

The untethered laughter of a child,

And you find that

The list goes on and on.

Realization dawns slowly,

That time is eating you away,

Relentless assault each second,

Working to fade you away.

Don't shed tears when I'm gone,

Nor hold onto me,

But carry on,

Do heed the lesson inscribed on my grave,

That say-

"Here lies a fool,

Only death could teach him how to live."