The Fortress

I built a fortress around me

To stop the bad from coming in.

The walls are thick and strong,

Shored up for my protection.

I feel relatively safe inside

Although melancholy sometimes plagues me.

But that seems a small price to pay

For the luxury to live my life freely.

Free of fear and conflict and pain,

Free of the world’s misery.

I stopped the bad from coming in

With the fortress I built around me.

It’s sometimes dark and gloomy, 

With grayness everywhere,

Light is hard to find here,

But I’m safe and free of despair.

I’ve built a sheltered life here

In my fortress made of stone.

A place where bad cannot find me

Where it’s quiet and I’m free. And alone.

Yes, I’m free.

Free of heartache.

And love.

Free of sorrow and grief.

And joy.

Free of failure and anxiety.

And passion.

I built a fortress around me

To keep me safe from the bad.

But it's starting to feel constricting 

With chains that are iron-clad.

I’m terrified to leave my fortress

And join the treacherous world again.

What if I get battered and cut,

Left bleeding and bruised and in pain?

I’m terrified to leave my fortress

But this feeling cannot be allayed.

I hear a voice screaming in my head

To break down this barricade.

It's hard to give up the security

And the safety my fortress provided.

But it’s becoming clear to me

That this whole venture was misguided.

I built a fortress around me

But it became a prison.

So I’m tearing down the walls,

Hesitantly,

Apprehensively, 

Hopefully,

To live in the world again.