Failure

“You haven’t succeeded in anything in your lifetime.”
“You work all day for nothing and sit alone at nighttime.”
“You are such a failure” the demons whisper in my ear.
“You have nothing to show for your labors year after year.”

Their words plague me as I struggle to find meaning in my stressful life.
The words keep ringing through my mind like a sharpened kitchen knife.
I do feel like a failure because nothing I do ever seems to succeed.
Try as much as I can; it seems I’m punished for any good deed.

My failures gnaw away at my heart and tear holes inside it.
Sometimes my lack of success makes me just want to quit.
What have I ever achieved over all my time on earth?
When I line up my achievements there seems to be a dearth.

It’s not from a lack of trying. I struggle each and every day.
I try so hard to find anything that will complete my resume.
I have no idea where I’m going as I swirl around the drain.
My life has no direction and confusion floods my brain.

I’m not afraid of hard work, but no one will give me a chance.
I seem ever subject to luck and sheer circumstance.
But I am not a quitter, so on again I tread.
To try again another day, barely holding on by a thread.

So to those demons screaming in my ear that I’m not good enough.
I have gotten this far by being determined and tough.
You might knock me down again and again, but I’ll just keep on getting up.
Keep on trying to make me quit but I tell you this, I’ll never give up.

©2025 Stephanie Blomquist