The Spotlight

"Goodbye forever, fleeting spotlight"

By Daniel Durand

Goodbye forever, fleeting spotlight.

I’ll remember you

But the stage is no longer mine

For so long I feared the dark

I was afraid to step out

But the dark cannot be avoided

Or mitigated

Or even contained.

It covers the ground you walk,

Encasing the trees and their roots

The flowers’ lack of colour

The roadside curb and accompanying footpath.

It’s everywhere.

To the shadow that pleaded me to stay,

I’ve stopped listening to you

You took my form and enclosed it in darkness

You thrived in the spotlight

But now you’re gone.

All that’s left is me

In the dark.

The inevitable darkness

But now I walk through new horizons

My hands reach out and feel

A variety of stones and flowers and petals

Of a sprawling summer field.

With a cautious jerk I opened one eye

The neon foliage made me squint

But soon I saw a broad blue sky

Bolstered by a vibrant meadow

Though confused at first, I now realised

That what lies in the dark isn’t so bad

It’s a beginning as much as it is an end

The birds sang freedom

as they soared the skies.

That wretched shadow

Filled my head with lies.

Goodbye forever, fleeting spotlight

My act of pretending is done

Gone is the glare that distorted my vision

Gone is the glare that you once shone.