Reaching for the snow atop the everest,
the grey dust of the moon,
or the cold blackness of space.

However we measure the distance,
To that place, those milestones,
that which we convet so.

Be it measured in miles, hearts, accolades,
or pieces of coloured paper or plastic.

We must all pass two milestones,
The thresholds of these bookends,
It must be passed alone.

No matter the distance,
To the fabled top of the world,
Be it eight thousand kilometers,
three hundred thousand miles,
a billion beats,
or a trillion dollars,
all journeys must start with one step,
they must also end with a single step,
Whether your arrive, or you do not.

If all we have is the step,
The first, the last, and each in between,
Do we step on golden rungs of our ladders,
standing tall and proud,
leaning on nothing at all.

If all we have is the step,
perhaps each should be on the ground,
without shoes, socks or fear,
Without concrete, tarmac or things that man built.

If all we have is the step,
perhaps we should feel the ground underneath it,
for it is soft and yeilding,
gentle and loving,
not the way man built it.

If all we have is the step,
perhaps we should take it one step at a time,
As Aesop once tried to tell us,
but this time, perhaps we do not race,
let us too nap, whenever we are tired,
or simply because we want to.

Let us remember,
for in the end,
everything crumbles,
your accolades, your dreams and your legacy,
even your memories,
If not today, then in a year or a hundred.

All we had, and only in that moment,
was the step.

In each of these steps,
the first, last, or each in between,
let us take a beat,
out of the billion we might have.

Let us smell the roses,
Let us smell the manure,
Let me see the colours,
of rainbows after rain,
Feel the air on our face,
Tears streaming down cheeks.

Through joy, or through sorrow,
let us live life.

Take my hand, my friend,
Take my hand, my lover,
Take my hand, you whom I know not yet,
Show me the of the world as you see it,
In greys or the colours of the rainbow,
Hear my song, the one that makes me cry,
Help me walk when I cannot,
Let me carry you when you cannot.

For in my life,
I care not for the milestones,
the numbers, or that which lasts,
not any more.

For in my life,
I let the destination go,
and I let the journey dissolve,
I need no more steps,
For I have all of you.