Unafraid; The Next Chapter

When a season of darkness concludes, I ask myself what lessons were learned. I wonder if I'm the only one who evaluates a depression? 

     My dark moments are fleeting, very rare, but worth the evolutionary thoughts which emerge. I haven't had one which lasted more than a couple of hours in a very long time, which makes me think that maybe I've learned to appreciate the rainbow a lot more than the storm. I look for the silver linings in every situation, recognizing the 'what if' factors in life. 

    What if I hadn't been so trusting in the goodwill of others? Then I wouldn't have learned that everybody isn't rooting for me, no matter how they fake it. What if I had not met and befriended certain people? Then I wouldn't have witnessed betrayal and duplicity, which makes me appreciate even more the people within my very small circle. What if life wouldn't have veered off course and teetered on destruction? Then I wouldn't have fully recognized the blessings in my life. See what I mean?

      In order to fully enjoy the good stuff in life, bad shit has to happen. It's inevitable. That's why my dark moods dissipate so rapidly, replaced by dreams, goals, and thoughts of better days ahead. 

      Every day is to be embraced, every moment to be enjoyed, and every victory to be celebrated. Today is its own achievement, a day which can't be discounted as just another day.

      I wrote my article for the next edition of Garden Spices magazine, then I wrote a poem about whispering in a woman's ear. Lol. I wrote three pages (1,000 words) in my latest short story 'End of the Bench' and I wrote a post for 'Voices from the Bleachers' celebrating our one-year anniversary. I made corrections, and added more to 'The Deuce 225,' a short story about friendship, capitalism, and a Buick Electra 225. I scanned and scoured websites for writers, where homes for stories, novels, essays, and poems can be sent. 

      Every day is a new opportunity, as well as another chance to get it right. The journey I'm on would have scared the shit out of me a few years ago. Now? After all of the things I've endured, both publicly and privately, there's nothing to be afraid of. Failure? What's that? It's nonexistent in my world, not relevant to anything. A person who keeps pushing ahead can never fail. Words to live by. 

       I'm unafraid and unbothered by the darkness anymore. The sun always comes up, and I can always flick the light switch to vanquish dark moments. This next chapter will be memorable...