"Dreams and Goals" - Bahamas AI Art
©A. Derek Catalano
You Must Be Driven
The blueprint lies upon the desk, a map of hope and light,
A calculated strategy to conquer through the night.
For dreams are merely shadows if they lack a solid base,
You need a plan to guide your steps and keep a steady pace.
But blueprints are but paper, and the ink is only dry,
Until you find the fire that reflects within your eye.
To reach the peak of promise and the goals that you have set,
You must be driven by a force the world hasn't witnessed yet.
The road is rarely level, and the path is seldom clear,
It winds through thickets of self-doubt and over ridges of your fear.
The sweat will bead upon your brow, the toil will weigh you down,
But labor is the only gold that buys a victor's crown.
You work while others slumber, and you rise before the sun,
Because the race for greatness is a race that’s never done.
It takes a heart of iron and a soul of tempered steel,
To keep the momentum moving and the spirit’s fire real.
But what if structures crumble? What if foundations fail?
What if the storm comes crashing in and rips away your sail?
There is no shame in falling, or in seeing plans decay,
The shame is only found in those who choose to walk away.
If everything you’ve built should fall and turn to dust and sand,
You brush the debris off your knees and take a firmer stand.
To start again is courage in its purest, rarest form,
To build a better shelter in the center of the storm.
Perhaps the mountain is too steep, the summit out of reach,
There are some lessons in this life that only failure’s hands can teach.
If one road meets a canyon wall, don't let your spirit die,
For there are secondary paths beneath the open sky.
Adjustment is not weakness; it is wisdom in the fray,
To find a more achievable and brightly lit highway.
A different route may lead you to a grander, better view,
As long as you are moving toward the best version of you.
You soldier on against the odds, though critics may deride,
With nothing but your character and willpower as your guide.
The obstacles are many, and the breakthroughs may be few,
But persistence is the miracle that carries vision through.
You deserve the bounty of the seeds that you have sown,
The fruits of every hardship that your beating heart has known.
For effort is a currency that never loses worth,
The most reliable engine for a triumph on this earth.
And then the moment crystallizes—sudden, sharp, and bright,
The shadows of the long ascent are swallowed by the light.
The mark of true success is made, not just in wealth or name,
But in the way you kept the spark and fanned it to a flame.
You stand upon the finish line, reflecting on the scars,
Realizing that the climb itself is what reached for the stars.
Accomplished and emboldened by the miles you had to run,
You look upon your legacy and know the work is done.
So let this be the anthem that you carry in your chest:
That drive is the distinction between the average and the best.
With a plan to hold your focus and a will that will not bend,
You’ll find that every setback is a means unto an end.
Through starting over, shifting gears, or pushing through the pain,
There is no drop of honest sweat that’s ever spent in vain.
Be driven, be determined, let your purpose be your fuel,
And you shall find that you are the exception to the rule.
©A. Derek Catalano/Gemini
