I gave her twenty-five years, my prime, my promise, my patience.
Walked away from a career to raise children, to build a home, to be the anchor when the waves hit.
And still, she threw it all away.
Everything we built together, gone.
At fifty-five, I was standing in the ashes, trying to start from zero.
Starting over at that age, isn’t revival, it’s rebirth.
Every dollar feels heavier, every sunrise more expensive. The world moves faster, and I move quieter.
But the silence teaches.
It tells you who you are when no one’s left to applaud. You learn the difference between what breaks you and what forges you.
The cost of living rises, but truth stays steady, you get what you give, and nothing more.
The universe doesn’t pity, it participates.
Mother Nature doesn’t hand out mercy, she rewards rhythm to those who rise with her, work with her, bleed with her.
So I get through it.
Not through faith or fortune, but through movement.
Through the quiet knowing that the sun still rises for me, and I still rise for it.
c 2025 Chu The Cud
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Chu The Cud 