What if?

Sometimes, the simplest decisions can feel like the weightiest ones.

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Dear Unlearners,

It's been raining cats and dogs in Toronto today. As some of you might know, I have a knee injury. I looked outside, wondering if I should go out, fearing I could fall.

I asked myself “What if?”

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What if my best just isn't enough, I fall short of the mark,

And all my efforts are meaningless, leaving me alone in the dark?

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What if I reach for the stars, but my fingers barely graze the sky,

My dreams could crash to earth, a painful lesson in how to fly.

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What if I speak my truth, but the words catch in my throat,

And the world stays silent to the change I want to see?

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What if I pour my heart into a passion, dedicate years to my art,

Only to find that success and recognition forever stay apart?

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What if I open my heart, vulnerable for all to see,

And in return, I'm met with rejection, left raw and empty?

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What if I dare to challenge norms, fight for my beliefs,

But my dream crumbles, and vision slips through like fallen leaves?

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What if I dedicate myself, invest my heart and mind,

On a road that leads to nowhere, leaving purpose far behind?

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What if I crash and burn, fall flat for all to view,

And shame becomes my shadow, following day and night?

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What if I invest my time, my energy, my very heart,

Into a path that leads nowhere, a journey without impact?

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What if I'm too old, too young, too different to fit in,

And my unique perspective is seen as a battle I can't win?

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What if all these doubts, these fears that plague my mind,

Are merely illusions, chains of my own design?

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What if I flip the script, trade "What if" for "Why not?"

And in that simple shift, I find the strength I thought I'd lost?

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For in the end, the greatest "What if" of all might be:

What if I never try, and miss who I'm meant to be?

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