I wish it was as easy
To lift my mood
As it is to dampen it.
One moment I am
Laughing in the face
Of all my troubles.
The next they are swamping me
Into a deep, dark abyss.
And shadows of my demons
Are passing my vision.
Somehow their smothering hands
Clamp around my neck.
At first, it seems as if
There is no chance
I will ever climb out.
Then a soothing smile becomes
A flicker of hope
That beams across the emptiness.
And I can finally
Begin to breathe again.