"Stand Tall" - Bahamas AI Art
©A. Derek Catalano
No matter what wrong may happen to you in your life and no matter how things may go wrong, sometimes by outside forces that you cannot control or maybe by your own poor decisions, you are still somebody.
You Are Still Somebody
Though shadows stretch and time betrays,
And dreams collapse in splintered rays,
When failure looms with mocking grin,
And hope feels foreign, locked within—
Still, you are more than pain and strife.
You are the echo of a life.
When choices weigh like heavy chains,
When guilt and sorrow carve their stains,
Remember this: the heart still beats,
Its rhythm defies all defeats.
For in the quiet pulse, you’ll find,
The ember of a steadfast mind.
The world may lash with cruel disdain,
Break promises like fleeting rain.
It may impose its random plight,
Turn morning’s gold to endless night.
Yet no storm claims your soul entire;
It cannot quench your inner fire.
Yes, you have stumbled; we all do.
Mistakes are threads that weave us true.
They do not mark the end of worth,
But teach the lessons of the earth:
That flawed and fallen hearts can rise,
And broken wings still touch the skies.
The mirror may reflect despair,
A weary face, a vacant stare.
But look beyond the glass’s sheen,
See all you’ve been, and all unseen:
The battles fought, the laughter shared,
The scars that prove you’ve truly cared.
You are the moments yet unspoken,
The bonds unmade, the chains unbroken.
You are the love you still can give,
The future days you’ve yet to live.
A spark amid the endless vast—
A story still to be amassed.
Do not forget, in darkened hours,
The dormant seeds of untold flowers.
Each breath you take, a quiet plea—
An anthem to your dignity.
No wound, no fall, no shame, no lie
Can take the worth of you—deny.
So stand, though knees may shake with fear,
And let the truth ring loud and clear:
The weight of trials cannot erase
The sacred essence of your grace.
Though shattered, bruised, or swept astray,
You are still somebody today.
Let whispers of the past recede;
Their grip can hold but will not lead.
For even lost, you shape the road,
And carry still a radiant load.
The world may falter, you may bend,
But worth endures, it cannot end.
No crown, no wealth, no lofty name
Can stake a greater, lasting claim.
For in your heart, beneath it all,
You are still somebody—
Standing tall.
©A. Derek Catalano/ChatGPT
