A Mazed
Why do we have a maze on our robot’s mirror plate?
When you first pick it up,
there is a strange allure to its madness.
You vaguely know where the end point is,
but the path to that end is completely unknown.
You make your entrance.
Corridor by corridor, corner by corner.
Things start moving, progressing,
some say even smooth sailing…
Then you hit your first dead end.
Confusion ensues.
Retrace your steps.
Find the way out.
Route after route,
Round and round you go.
Passageways once explored
out of curiosity and wonderment,
become familiar alleyways revisited
with disdain and despondency.
"I mean, there must come a point
when I'm back at square one,
where I've failed so many times,
that only one, correct, path remains
…right?”
Your vision tunnels, your focus sharpens.
Time appears to dilate,
but the path forward
finally grows clearer.
Yet strangely, as the end draws near,
the unshakeable feeling of pointlessness
over the entire endeavour
only grows stronger.
Ultimately,
what lies in the centre of it all,
the "end" of the road,
is just a simple, plain mirror.
It shows your reflection,
serving as a reminder
that this journey's purpose
has always been you.
Your strongest motivator;
your greatest enemy.
Every lesson gained;
every suffering endured.
The constant stream of bad luck
which you have cursed at so passionately
as being the work of some evil entity,
becomes most laughable
in the face of the lifeless environment.
The only dynamic factor
the only thing that has changed
throughout this course
is you.
Despite gaining clarity
over the absurdity of your situation,
the urge still remains
to travel this maze once more,
this time going the opposite way,
from the inside-out…
just for fun.