I walk down this winding path,
Giant stone walls closing in,
No, not here!
I can’t be trapped here…
A maze.

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Panic sets in,
Desperately searching for a way out,
But the more I run,
The closer these walls become.

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I feel like a clam trapped in its shell,
Struggling to breathe,
To escape…
Yet, as I tread along these walls,
The images on their edges grow clearer.

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I realize this maze is more than it seems.
It isn’t a maze at all—
It’s the pathway of my life.

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In those moments when I want to quit,
The walls close in,
Suffocating.

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In the moments when life is good,
The path widens,
Space to dance with joyous bliss.

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I stop panicking,
Slow my pace.
Why rush to the end?
Even in the claustrophobic moments,
I embrace every aspect.

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In those times of total encasement,
When the walls press in as if they might crumble,
I’m enclosed, alone.
Just me, myself, and I.
I learn who I am as an individual,
Learn to love myself for me.

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In those times when my walls open wide,
And I have room to dance,
I invite others to dance by my side,
Trusting enough to let them into my domain,
Inside my walls,
My maze,
My life.

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My maze has its twists and turns,
Moments when I hit a dead end,
Moments when I must retrace my steps,
Moments when I have to choose which way to go.

But every turn teaches me a lesson,
Paints a new portrait on the wall’s edge—
Some beautiful,
Some horrendously hideous.

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Yet, I’ve learned to love every minute of it.