Liam Barr

Someone close asks what I'll do if it doesn't happen.
Each time they ask a little of their worry creeps in.

They mean it as something practical.
A sensible future to prepare for.
Repeated often enough it starts sounding like foresight.

They are imagining one future.
I still believe in another.

I can hear their worry without borrowing their conclusion.
I can love them without carrying their fear.

Their worry can unsettle me.
It cannot decide where I place my trust.

The ground can shift without asking us.
Plans disappear. Our options shrink.
We may have no say in where we land.

Circumstance can lead us away from where we intended.
It can keep us there longer than imagined.
It might even leave us scarred.
None of this requires our permission.

But there are two kinds of standing.
Where we stand.
And what we stand for.

The first can be decided for us.
The second remains ours to relinquish.

I asked my tarot cards if it would work out.

One card flipped out as I shuffled.
The Ace of Swords.

Clear thought.
Decisive action.
Good fortune on my side.
Have no doubt.

I want to believe it.

The road ahead still scares me.
Nothing about it has changed.
The card reminds me I am not walking alone.

I still cannot see where it leads.
But I trust it'll work out.