the worth and agony of trying (for ashley)

sitting in front of the screen, considering

the worth and agony of trying.

eyes hurting and head spinning, 

the spirit of the envied traveller deflates.

she braced herself, she left. 

she journeyed, she opened her arms

to mountains and oceans and skies,  

to learning and adventure,

to wilderness,

to a man.

his hair is short. and he loves her.

he uses words she doesn’t know.

she tells of her life and her home, 

so far away,

with pictures and words,

soul and body.

she’s yearning for something more.

arms wide open

to the belabouring, the exhausting, the mundane, 

the impossible.

the impossible...

is it really possible?

sitting in front of the screen, turning to face the man

with short hair 

and a far-away life that's growing nearer and nearer,

and there, for a moment, catching a glimpse

of the worth and agony of trying.

she never stops trying (a song for Bethany)

there’s a girl that i know just a few blocks away

and she’s filling up with wisdom for her words and her ways

i said, “i neglect you and i wanna be all that i should”

she said, “i’m here for learning on, and i think that you’re good”

and the thing i like about her

is that she never stops trying

digging down and building up

with a purpose that’s never dying

never dying

she’s painting with a brush of the beauty she can’t see

singing from a canvas the colours that we need

she said, “my steps fall weighty... as i start to learn my part 

in the dance” and i think Jesus is living in her art

and the thing i like about her

is that she never stops trying

digging down and building up

with a purpose that’s never dying

never dying

she dances with a broom every night before bed

sweeping up the footprints with a song in her head

that girl is only two years and seven months older than i am

she’s my sister and a woman and my friend

and the thing i like about her

is that she never stops trying

she never stops trying