Wandering through desolate streets, skies gray, cold days, my unwanted cargo of excess and excuses weigh heavy on my shoulders. My feet shuffle slowly beneath the weight, moments and missed opportunities passing by at speeds unreachable at the moment.

Without thought, wandering for miles and years with steps always slowed, my spirit almost broken from the strain of pushing against the thoughts of self loathing. Like a biting wind they extinguish all hope of finding a place to pitch my ballast, to warm my bones and change the disposition of my days forever.

I sit to rest, my adversities at arms length for the moment. I try to catch my breath from the exertion of my journey. Huddling under a thin wrap that strains to cover me and my dark rider, I did not notice the place where my feet had carried me.

My quest for shelter from the storm of my life had brought me to the crossroads.

Decisions lay ahead in all directions. Roads that would lead to answers or continue on to misery. I strain to see down each stretch. My eyes search beyond the horizon in vain for a visible answer. Pushing forward into the unknown, the only way to see.

I survey the options and find three of the roads no different than the one my feet had already lead me down. One road did speak to me however. It rose higher than all the others. In that moment I knew what had to be done. Difficult and daunting, this road that climbed upward would take me to a better place. It must.

I pointed my feet towards that ever rising grade and slowly moved forward, one foot, then the other. It had begun. The end far from sight, but ever present. My countenance changes to that of a modern day Columbus, my course set headlong into uncharted waters.

My feet move steadily forward, heart pounding faster as the black topped adversary begins to become steeper. I lean into the resistance and press on, steps hard and deliberate as if to say "you will not defeat me today."

Pausing for breath under the strain of that mammoth cross I so reluctantly bear, the promise made to never give in like so many times before echos in my head. I had chosen this road because it would test my resolve.

The winds that howl down it's straight and narrow path, rip the cobwebs from the places they had occupied in my heart for so long. My body screams in rebellion, my soul muffles it's cries and urges me to move on.

Day after day, mile after mile, I move on. My body and my will growing stronger. The travel companion I have carried for so many years, quiet and weak for the first time in decades, his size decreases with the passing days. I feel my resolve strengthen with my success, the promises made closer to fulfillment.

Diligently I continue on. The peak and my providence still distant, but closer than they have ever been before.