The weight teeters on my shoulders now,
made up of things you cannot count
but in sleepless nights, restless days,
and so I wonder: should I stay
this course to a hazy lesser-known
path, unwalked of, but not alone
and at least talked of, if progress holds
and I become all I've been told
I could, by teachers, peers, and loving
voices that say I'm of tougher stuff. See,
 
I'm driven by their belief, their trust,
but I'm wondering just what I must
bear, for it's more than all the work
I've done and do and will do—sure
I know some will have it worse yet,
but is all this cost worth all the debt,
the bet that I can safely sail
past rocky shores where others fail
and come upon the boons, not countless,
but in just survivable amounts. Yes,
 
I will accept, for the choice was made
for me by so many yesterdays,
the stories that have grown inside me
shall see the light, and pray they find the
ears and eyes to enter into,
and yearning minds that will construe
their purpose, substance, pace, and wit
worth all the blood, and worth the sweat,
worth all the debt, and worth the tears,
worth all the years, and worth this fear.
 
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Isaiah Everin is pursuing a Masters in Digital Game Development from The Guildhall at Southern Methodist University. He received a BA in Creative Writing from Columbia University on scholarship, and seeks to learn to design, write, and develop video games.