I live with a monster, a beast, a creature, that wishes nothing more than to devour me whole, rip my life asunder, even end my life. I have battled this beast for many years. Now at this moment in my life it is caged, perhaps even tamed, but it is always there in the shadows waiting, watching for any chance to break free and complete its foul unforgiving task. I have fought this entity, slowly gaining ground, a mental tug of war for my very sanity. I now have armor, a shield, a sword forged of my own sheer will to survive. So it waits, one misstep, one too long bout of exhaustion and it will burst forth and tear me to shreds. The beast waits, quietly, coldly, ever vigilant, for any sign of weakness, any loss of concentration. Sometimes is rattles its cage reminding me that I must always remain on guard, poised to do battle at any time. I can always feel it’s foul breath hot and humid at the nape of my neck. Only with my own death will my creature be finally forever silenced. I have seen many lost to their beast, torn and ravaged by their personal monster. I will always fight to keep this monstrosity at bay, but I grow weary, I grow tired, I grow longer in years and I fear one day the beast will brake its bonds and take me into the Abyss, yet I fight on. I fear I have planted the seed of such a creature in my own precious prodigy. So I will watch for the flash of violence that it may bring to my own beloved daughter, but with her beast I have also planted the designs for her own armor, her own sword, I will place her shield into her able hands, so that she may be better prepared for her own personal battles. So I live with this beast, I do not hate it, I do not curse it’s name, for it has allowed me to forge a strength that few will ever know. I live tall and proud in the shadow of the beast, I will fight until all my strength leaves my earthly being. We all have beasts, some larger and stronger than others. We are all warriors in our own way. So don’t give in, make your armor, build your sword and acquire your shield and keep those monsters at bay, for we all contain just as much power as the creatures we battle. For only then can we become our own hero, our own champion and win the battle of our own self worth and keep that beast in its cage where it belongs and perhaps one day even tame it and be able to truly rest a hero’s rest that all true warriors deserve.
© Elizabeth Moore