The Smile At the Foot of the Ladder
It was a ladder called Death
I found myself at its foot, a bit foggy in the mind,
Hurt in the heart and worn out with everything else
Next to it, was a signboard on which was written
"Climb with a smile or with tears, it matters not,
Whichever, you will have to climb!"
Looking back at my life, I saw only pain, suffering,
Struggles, hurt and regrets!
And now, having come to its final stage,
What was I supposed to do?
Smile or cry as I would climb the ladder?
Pray, I have smiled while I lived, I have smiled
At those moments during which I was immortalised
At those moments when everyone would tell me
You should smile more!
Yet, I was the only one aware of how empty my smile was
How empty indeed, even if it lifted others off their feet!
I looked up the ladder and saw not their end,
Since I have trained myself to smile with emptiness all this time
May I do so this time too, while climbing this last ladder known as Death!
For Contest: The Smile at the Foot of a Ladder
Written on 28th April 2019
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