she said, 'you make it look so easy' and i almost laughed, the burn in my quads a dull thrum all day reminding me that easy is a lie we tell ourselves to feel better about the times it isn't. easy is a story and i get to choose which story to tell, i guess. dex would say i'm making it sound harder than it is, but then he also forgets to breathe sometimes when we're climbing and has to be reminded, so maybe we all have our stories. maybe the point isn't easy or hard, it's just...showing up to the story every damn day and letting it unfold, the good, the bad, the cramping thighs and the sunrises that make you forget everything else exists for a minute.