The Weight

author’s note:

Not to be confused with the song of the same name.

The weight in the poem is a different type of burden than the one described in the song.  Heavier.


THE WEIGHT

In the dream
I carried the world on my shoulders

and felt unfairly burdened

until I looked around the crowd
and saw how everyone else also struggled
to remain upright.

The weight just might break the human race.

Some say
the weight comes from the knowledge
death always watches
and may suddenly become impatient.

Some say the same in another way—
they say
the weight comes from
our distrust of the world—
the instinct that keeps us alive.

Yes—
I feel myself wrapped inside
that state of mind

except in those moments
when the stronger me breaks free.

In the openness of release
I may again experience
the unknown enormity
of a sky and planet so grand.

At such times
life seems much too much—
even in peace the weight stays with me.

So
since I can’t get rid of the weight
I’ve decided to embrace the burden—

I tell myself:
if you didn’t feel the weight
you wouldn’t struggle so hard to be strong.

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