A Special Companion

Journeys start in different ways for very many reasons
One I’ll remember all my life for I’m glad it never stopped
Birthed in anguish on the darkest night I thought I’d ever seen
Marks of failure like a legend scrawled across its map
It seemed so doomed, no hope held out though barely just begun

Suffering asked to come along, to join my journey too
I sent her back without a thought, “I have no need for you”
I need companions to get me through, to help me find my way
Logic, reason and rationale are ones I choose to take
Steady companions I’ve come to love, they’ve stood the test of time

She took my hand and held it tight said this journey I must take
You need me by your side, the unprotected one
We argued some, I fought her off, I didn’t understand
She won the battle and came along, though I fought her valiantly
She had a wisdom I could see, though it left a bitter taste

She said you’ll come to cherish me for the ways that I can lead
You’ll need a special guide to help you reach the stars
To go the places you dream about you must conquer the depth
Only I can lead you there and bring you back again
Defining moments are never cast in carefree company
The darkest nights can only show the brightest morning light
The deepest valleys lead you to, a greater grander view
One that only can be seen by those who’ve been below

My presence is a part of life; you have no choice in that
That I travel by your side won’t be what makes it rough
Refusing gifts I’ve brought to you or lessons that I’ll teach
These are things that make it tough and in those you have a choice
I’ll bring you grief and pain and loss and these are not so bad
For in the midst of holding them I’ll teach you how to live
You will awaken to find the life you wished you always had

Your world will sharpen and come alive in colors never seen
You’ll touch an ache within your soul your certain will swallow you whole
In time you’ll see it hasn’t done a single harmful thing
It’s only brought a depth to life, those rich and vibrant hues
Moments missed are captured now and held to lovingly
Everything is richer now and three-dimensional
The picture that she paints for me stirs hope within my soul

She took me to some places I didn’t want to go
Far from the pictures I had seen, I didn’t want to go
I kicked and fussed afraid at last, that pain would rob me blind
That it would take away from me the little that I had
Admittedly it wasn’t much but it was all I’d known
I clung to it afraid I’d lose and then be wandering around
Inside the darkness I’d always thought, had a semblance of the light
She loosed my grip and touched my eyes to help me be more clear
She helped me see how it really was so I could then be free
And then a vision of my life, what it could someday be
Danced before these eyes of mine and I could really see

They say a sculptor merely frees, what God has placed within
And suffering has her special role it frees me just the same
She works and labors ‘til finally, his design has been set free
Now removed from its tomb of stone it begins to shape anew
The landscape of my life has changed; I’ll never be the same
I’ll never be the one I was, because I’ve been set free
I am a work in progress; she’s not finished with me yet
The one that I will be has yet to be made known

Suffering asked to stay awhile and journey on with me
I am afraid, I told her that, but said I need you still
My world is better and richer now though I barely understand
Big chunks of stone were chipped away, yet many parts have not been freed
It brought a tear to eyes of stone to see how wrong I’d been
I need your friends; grief, pain and loss I still need their company
They take me places I’d never go, if they left it up to me
I need their lessons, the depth they bring, new dimensions to my world

Suffering asked to stay awhile and journey on with me
I am afraid, I told her that, but said I need you still
I need a guide to take me on, to build depth within my soul