When you feel you’ve been at it,

for far too long

Been living this life for far too long.

That’s struggle.

Struggle? Yes, you may ask.

What is struggle?

Have you ever experienced struggle?

Yes, I think you may have.

Struggle is seeing your father beating your mother to a pulp every passing day.

Yes, that is struggle.

Not knowing what you will eat the next day.

Where the only meal your child gets, is from school.

Struggle is smiling when you are sad.

Stuggle is shouting but nobody hearing you.

Wanting a fix to numb all the pain.

Or a drink to drown your sorrows.

Struggle is when you are a saint by day and a sinner by night.

Knowing your dreams might not come true.

Struggle is going for that job interview knowing there is already a name to that job.

It is being offered choices that both suck and will not likely improve your condition,

much like being stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Struggle is when you wet your pillow everyday with your tears.

Struggle is contemplating to end your life because it is too damn hard.

Having heard the word ‘No’ too many times.

Having no one to cry to.

Feeling hopeless.

You have known what struggle is.

You have seen struggle:

If you’ve seen a woman prostituting herself to feed her kids;

Seen a man hang himself because he thought himself useless;

Seen a drunk man lying in his own vomit on the street, with flies all over him and children laughing at him;

Seen a man chase his wife down the street with a sjambok;

Seen a woman stripped off of everything because she couldn’t pay umashonisa and umashonisa wanting sex as payback;

Seen youngsters working two jobs to pay for their college education;

Seen shadows chasing shadows in the witching hour.

You have seen struggle.

You’ve heard struggle:

If you’ve heard your mother’s deep, bitter cries in the bedroom;

Heard gunshots in the early hours of the morning;

Heard a child insult his own parents;

Heard a thief’s screams being burned alive by an angry mob;

Or heard the pained laughter of your neighbour who is struggling to keep it all together.

You have heard struggle.

Struggle is knowing things might not change and might get worse,

but also believing that life might turn out for the better.

That maybe the light at the end of the tunnel might not be so far way.

Struggle is also being afraid to face another day because you don’t know what tomorrow might bring.

That is struggle.