Is someone actually carrying me through this?

Your breath hitches a little on the inhale. You notice it now, in the quiet—a tiny catch in your own rhythm. Maybe it has been there all day, beneath the tasks and replies and the constant moving from one thing to the next. You have been trying to march, but your body is telling you it can't keep this pace much longer.

Here is the answer to the question you might be afraid to ask out loud: yes. Someone is.

'He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.'

Look at the verbs. He gathers. He carries. He gently leads. You are not a person who has to find the right pace and then hold it together. You are a lamb being gathered. The arms are already around you. The carrying is already happening. This is not a promise for when you get stronger—it is a description of right now, tonight, while you are tired and your breath catches and you have nothing impressive to show.

The leading is gentle because the one doing the leading knows exactly how worn out you are. He is not pushing you faster. He is holding you close.

That catch in your breath? Let it be the moment you stop marching. You are not falling behind. You are being carried.