The Pit

A man is trapped.

Since he can remember, he has lived the entirety of his life in a deep, obscure Pit. The Pit's walls are shallower than that of circular well but steeper than a Saving Private Ryan bomb crater, and made up of solid, slippery rocks held together by gritty masonry.

The Pit is his home, but he knows that he is not of It. Having once been told, the man knows he belongs to the Land Above, but the longer he dwells in the Pit, the more it defines him. His eyes are accustomed to the dim, tired light. At times, Light - pure golden beams from a rich, holy country - shines down on him from above, but those occurances are rare, and often unpleasant for the man. He feels a strong desire for his homeland during these illuminations, and is motivated to escape from the pit in a burst of energy and strength. However, after beginning to climb, handholds and footholds become scarcer and less secure further up. He invariably slips, falling down to the unforgiving bottom, which causes him a great deal of pain and discouragement. The higher he climbs, the more painful and damaging the succeeding fall.

Sometimes, his Light-induced motivation to escape is so strong that he will attempt climbing several times in order to succeed, but he is never able to make it. Eventually, he becomes very discouraged and surrenders to the thought that he will never leave the Pit, so he might as well just make the best of it. Besides, the Pit wasn't all bad: in fact, it pleased him in many ways. It was cool and damp, and he never suffered from heat. Solitude was another plus; there was plenty of time for deep, introspective thought and philosophical writing.

But without fail, the Light returns, awakening the desire to climb out, and the cycle repeats again, with the same result. Each time it looks a little different, as if he would be able to do this time, but he always ends up falling.

One glorious day, Help arrived. Help was strong, full of life, and had a specific mission: to get the man out of the Pit and restore him to his homeland. He was so capable of helping the poor man that one giant reach from his arm would take a hold of the man and lift him out. Help's voice boomed out to the man, huddled and shivering at the Pit's bottom, and the Light from the Land Above brilliantly shone all around: Are you ready to come out and be free? The man, so full of happiness from seeing the Light shine so brightly, responded, YES! I'll be there quickly - just give me a boost, and I'll make it out. I'm so glad you've come! You're just what I needed to make it to the top! Help replied, No. I alone must do it, because I am the only one capable of placing you where you truly belong.

But I almost made it last time, replied the man. I just need a little help at the end - that's the tricky part. So the man began climbing once again. He made it pretty far, and was nearing the 3/4 mark of the Pit wall when he looked up to expect Help's intervention. Help was nowhere to be found, and the Light had faded. Unfazed, he clung to the Pit wall, shouting, Hey, look at how well I'm doing! I'm almost there! I don't need any Hel---, and then noisily fell down to the bottom once again.

Help's head appeared at the Pit's opening again, and the man begged forgiveness: I know, I should have let you do it. I'm such an idiot. I'll never make it out of here. I'm so stupid - I'll never be able to trust you, because I'm so-- Help interrupted him: The only way you will return to your homeland, to true life, is trusting in my ability to get you out of this Pit. You must submit to this and allow me to destroy every trace of self-confidence you have built up over the years. No amount of determination on your part will restore you to true life, the life you were made to have. The question is, will you actively trust me each day and remove your trust in yourself?