There is a doorway in the mind;
beware you who find it and step within.
It will lead you into dark labyrinths
of circles, dead ends and hidden turns.
In four dimensions it spirals
from giddy heights to unfathomed depths,
from before time to all eternity.
Pause a moment,
your hand upon the latch;
will you step within?
There will be no return, traveller,
to that shallow place which
seemed to be all there was.
Once through that door you will wander
a way unseen and unknown.
Others you will meet along the way,
those who have succumbed
and stepped through their own secret door.
They will walk a while in tandem
but do not cling to their company
for they will leave you
and you will mourn their passing.
For many miles you will walk alone
through storms, through nights as dark as hell,
with ghosts and horrors
as your midnight companions.
None can reach you on that path;
they can only stand and watch,
with arms you cannot see
stretched out in love.
Times you will drop to your knees
exhausted, unable to crawl another inch,
unable to raise your head;
unwilling to look ahead,
unable to turn back.
What will you then, traveller?
Will you question your sanity?
Will you regret your choice
as you stood on the threshhold?
Beware the secret paths of the mind, traveller,
there are waterless deserts within,
dense forests and raging torrents,
hidden wells of pain,
of tears and shame and guilt.
Knives will pierce your soul
and you will bleed.
Why would you lift the latch, traveller,
why step onto that path
that lasts through all eternity?
Have courage!
For those who dare, for those who yearn,
who ask, who seek, who knock,
there are rewards beyond belief.
Sunrise follows sunset
and day comes after night.
Comfort and blessings you will have, traveller,
oases of peace and calm,
days of warmth and sunlight,
nights of velvet moonshine;
a rare sharing of souls, arms quick to hold
and the strength of another to lean against.
And the path you will call your own
will ensnare you with promises of wonder.