The Path

Wednesday, August 23rd, 2023

Imagine yourself as a child. You just turned five years old. You can walk and run until your hearts content. You walk outside of your house to an open field. The sun is out, blue sky, and not a cloud in sight. In front of you is a path. There was nothing on the left and nothing on the right but open fields. This road was made for you. You can see a friendly well-know figure still crafting it with a hoe. Enticing you to walk it. As you begin to walk, excitement starts to fill you from head to toe.

Three years later, you are now eight years old. As you’re walking, you see more paths connected to yours on the right and left. Made by other figures. Some are also well-known. Others barely know you at all. And others, don’t know you at all. Some of these paths are just like the one you’re walking on, and you can see they were still being built. There were even paths longer than yours, farther than the eye can see. Some even curving to match the direction of the well-known figure. At the same time there are paths with visible signs. Some you can barely see, and others being not three inches away. But all the signs have the same two words on them. “The End.” Along with rectangular holes dug right in front of them. You don’t think much of them and try to ignore them by keeping in the middle. To carry on the original path.

Five years later, you are now thirteen. The paths to your right and left are still there. But instead of staying in the middle. Catch yourself veering to either side. Catching your eye far more than it would have. You look at the paths that are short and have visible endings instead of the more longer ones with endings to far to see. At times you catch yourself stopping and staring at the paths that ended, just by taking two steps. It was here when you finally know or even admit to yourself as to why these paths, created by strangers, ended so soon. There weren’t a lot of them, but they caught your eye quicker than the longer ones. Some of these strangers had meet you once and already determined how and when your life was going to end, whether it’s a good thing or a bad thing. As the months follow, you slowly start drifting towards one side more. You haven’t seen a path that was less than a foot away for a while now, but you knew the moment you did, that would be the path you take. Just so you wouldn’t have to see anymore, or think about them ever again. Your excitement about the path in front of you slipped through your mind. All you can think about is how sorry you’ll feel that they have spent so many years making this path for you.

Two years later, you are now fifteen. As the days went by you find yourself inching closer, and closer, and closer to the side of the path. Your walking pace getting slower, and slower, and slower. You stop once more, staring at yet another road that ends from taking one step. You grow tired of seeing these roads. Knowing that the people who made them that have met you once, would believe that this is how far you are going to make it in life. As kids were told the first impressions are everything. Your mind has been in the black abyss for so long that you believe the people who didn’t like that first impression of you. You believed that you are a monster or plague. You look over to your left to see the well-known figure at the end of the unfinished path they are making for you. Standing only ten feet away from you. You can vaguely remember how happy you were when you first started walking. Bu that memory was enough for you to step away from the path and continued moving forward with the little confidence you have given yourself. The well-known figure lowers their pace, looking back at you every now and then. Incase you stop again. But you stay close to the side.

You are now eighteen. It has been fourteen years since you have started walking down this path. The strength you’ve been holding to stay away from the side and move back to the middle, is slower building up. Often time you catch yourself drifting to the middle. You press on hoping one day they’ll stop showing up, but your patience dwindles every step you take. You don’t want to go on like this any longer. Even going as far as to isolate yourself to make them stop. You begin to regretting not taking the opportunity the shortest roads presented. No matter how harsh they may have seemed. At least they would be quick and painless.

But what if there was another way to avoid those annoying roads. A path that only ends when you want it to end. A path made by you. You look over to the empty field with enough space in between two paths. You look back at the well-known figure and you run up to them. Asking for a hoe. When they obliged, you ran back to the open space and begin crafting your own path.

Word Count: 908