It’s always darkest before the dawn

When the stars have all burned out

The moon has sunk low and sun has stubbornly refused to rise

The world is blanketed in the blackest of blacks

And everything is still

Voices are silenced

Breath is held

The world waits

Waits to see if the promise of dawn will be fulfilled

And for one excruciating moment

It seems that it never will

Then a faint glow appears on the horizon

And the shadows slowly recede

The dawn breaks

The world breathes

And life goes on