Stand

Stand

As I was walking through the forest at night, I felt the darkness fall on me like a ton of bricks. The pain, the agony, the stress. I fell in the dingy mud and could not find a way to get back to my feet. It was so dark that I could not even see my hands in front of me. After hours and hours of struggling, I finally made it back to my feet. Trembling, I began to stumble towards some sort of light………..so dim, but yet visible in the distance. I tried to run, but there seemed to be something holding my feet close to the ground. Some sort of weight on my ankles, pushing my feet back to the ground every time I tried to take a lengthy stride. So, all I could do was walk……and even that took forever. As I approached the light, it seemed to get smaller and smaller and even more dim than it was before. Soon, the light was gone. I turned round and round, but saw nothing but darkness. The same darkness that forced me into the mud. The same darkness that tried to defeat me millions and millions of times before. Something’s got to give, something. Why can’t I find a way out of this darkness, this death, this nightmare? Why can’t I escape this torture? There’s another dim light in the distance. How can I get to it? I do the same thing as last time. I walk……it seems like it takes me forever and a day, but finally, I make it close enough, but again, the light disappears. Then, all of a sudden, I feel a sense of lightness in my body, like the weights have been taken off of my shoulders and ankles. I try running, but I trip and fall in the mud again. Dirty and in need of some sort of food, I stand and walk, but this time its easier. I put my hand in front of me and I can see it. For the first time in years, I can make out my hand in front of me. I start to jog……then, I begin to run, no stumbling, no tripping. I run in a direction that I have never even thought of. I run and run and run and finally get to a place where not only can I see my hands, but I can see everything. Trees, clouds, the sun, grass, houses, buildings. I can see everything. There is no mud, just solid ground. I bend down to pick up some fresh grass to sniff it and smell its beauty. I look and see a rock in the distance. A big rock…….one that children would play on. It almost seems like it begs me to run to it. I finally make it to the rock. There is an inscription on it. Set yourself upon this rock and walk in Freedom, never to fear the darkness and mud again. I climb onto the rock and reflect on my life. Do I want to stand in the darkness and continue to fall in the mud? Do I want to stand in the darkness with the pain and torture that once ruled my life? Do I want to stand in the darkness with weights around my ankles and on my shoulders? Or, do I want to stand on this rock and be able to see what’s before me, free to run without bearing the weight of that darkness? So, it lead me to this question. Who stands and what do they stand on? Do they stand on the rock, or do they stand in the mud?