No Matter How Hard

No matter how hard I try to get ahead,

My life is still filled with overwhelming dread.

It is never enough or what it takes

Yet the smile on my face is always a fake.

I am stretched to the limit with nowhere to go

I feel as if my world turns ever so slow.

With all the pressure and roles to fill

Each new month brings another bill.

Running in circles trying to make ends meet

What I wouldn’t give for a moments retreat.

For a life filled with strife and full of pain

My world is always cloudy and drenched in rain.

When will it stop, when will it end?

Is there a way for my life to mend?

The future is bleak with nothing to give,

Sometimes I wonder why I still try to live.

Giving up would be easy with a final goodbye,

But those left living would wonder why.

Yet it is a struggle to continue to fight

When darkness prevails over every night.

The need to forget, to heal and be whole

To be myself and fulfill my role.

The children who love me without condition

Keeps me from a path to sure perdition.

Though the way is dark and fraught with strife,

I’ll continue to fight and stand for life.

March 31, 2009