The journey

it starts
falters
fails
still she rises
follows that yellow brick road
and never ending pathways
leading off in tangents
small winding trails
and broad highways
follow the rivers edge
stand at the cliff top
and the roads shoot off
stretch out
a thousand journeys of grand adventures
and simmering heartache
love, the treasure sought
remains at best, a luxury only glimmered
never fully explored
still worth the chase
she thinks
she feels
so she chases the illusion
running down cobble stoned streets and tracks beaten in by time and weight
the dust on her feet and back
her eyes glisten with the promise
cheeks soaked at every dead end path
still she turns and treks on
sometimes blazing a trail
forging a new frontier
determination set on her face
the weight of past loss still a burden  across her shoulders
but she carries it willingly
grateful for its substance
the pain that encumbers her
embraced for the simple joy of being
vulnerability an asset, not just a curse
her feet battle weary
her heart a vacant lot trampled by many
and the footprints remain embedded there
each a twisted treasure of who she has become
strength endures
rises and follows the movement of the stars and sun and moon
and she takes flight
alights
as the roads stretch out
from one consequence to another