It's a scene we all know too well. The hero is going, going, running for all they're worth, certain life is good and things only get better and . . . WHAM!! Head first into a brick wall. Get up, get up, they're saying to themself. Sometimes it takes longer and sometimes they bounce right back up. They stare at the wall, looking for a way around or over and eventually, whether it's an obvious maneuver or one that takes a bit of thought, they make it to the other side and start running again.
I'm staring at that brick wall. I thought I had a glimpse of the other side. I thought I had found my way past it. . . .But there's no way over it. I've looked and looked and come to the realization that I'm stuck. I can't go around and I can't climb over. There are no loose bricks to tear at. I can't move forward. I'm being forced to stay right where I am, no matter how desperately I to get to the other side. This time, there's a key I need to be given to get through. It's out of my hands. I've given my all, spent time researching and deciding, and all I've got to show for it is a broken heart and crushed hopes.
Now I'm at my rope's end. I've cried and screamed and told that wall that it's not playing fair. I've insulted it and plead with it. It just stands there, immovable, denying me. In a matter of seconds, intense emotions have run through me. First: horrified, then upset, then furious, and now I'm just devastated. Everything's out of my hands.
I've got nothing but the imprints of bricks on my face to show for my trouble.
