A reader named Delaney Moore, whose mom has PSP, sent this poem to the comments page, accompanied by a prose explanation. You can find them both there, but I thought the poem was so beautiful and meaningful that I copied/pasted it into a post on its own. It refers to my September 24 post about a new, potential approach to neuroprotective treatment entitled, “Proof of Principle and Cause for Hope.”

Proof of Principle: a Valley of Hope (by Delaney Moore)

“Proof of principle: a cause for hope”

A reason to fight; to stay afloat

They say, “life is a journey,”

that it’s long and uncertain.

Your path twists, then attacks you, all attempts to dishearten.

Then all of a sudden,

you’re falling and flailing as you crash and collide

into deep, daunting valleys,

canyons so dismal and wide.

You’re flanked by trough walls that trap you within and torment your mind.

But you don’t listen to the echoes, whispering lies to deceive you;

you know you aren’t lost, you know you’ll break through.

So you take a deep breath, drawing on bravery from within,

You refuse to surrender, to give up, to give in.

You know fear always lingers,

but courage always wins.

You start stumbling forward, slowly gaining ground.

The trek leaves you breathless; gravity beats you down.

You feel the weight of the world while the battle rages on,

But the fire within you continues to burn.

Your small, sluggish steps start to widen with ease,

It’s the fight of your life, but you begin to break free.

And, alas, you continue on your expedition of existence;

you push through, stumble forward, stagger onward, with persistence.

Until suddenly you see it, it’s in the distance, growing near.

You’ve made it out of the valley, rounded the slope – you’re free from fear.

And as you begin to catch your breath, you reflect on your trials;

the valley you conquered, despite slopes that continued for miles.

Most forget that the valley was formed over millions of years.

Brutalized by the elements, she now shapes the frontier.

The formidable sight was once a simple mound of mass,

just rugged terrain standing strong, firm, and vast.

Yes, time played its tricks, and nature dealt her cruel hand,

and the river came crashing, plundering through the land.

It cut through the valley, weathering her down,

eroding her body, leaving only slopes that had cradled the mound.

The river was violent, bringing pain, bringing change,

but as the centuries passed, the valley earned her triumphant name.

And despite the cruel torture the river unleashed,

the valley became a symbol of struggle on the journey to peace.

Proof of principle: a valley of hope.

Through trials come victory; your fight keeps you afloat.

You’ll voyage through valleys, hike mountains, climb slopes.

You’ll venture to the top, gaining strength as you cope.

And when you finally reach the peak, you’ll look back at how you’ve grown;

you’ll see that, despite climbing solo, you were never alone.

Because just like the valley, you’ve persevered through endurance and loss,

learning lessons that make you, shape you, and give you reason to pause.

To look back at your life, at each valley and slope that you’ve met,

where you’ll be awe-struck by your resilience on the journey you’ll never regret.

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