I sit on the bed, alone and free Ticket in hand, bags by my knees I smile to myself and think out loud The adventures I had that made me proud

A long time ago, I had a dream To visit a world I had never seen To open my mind to exciting new things Ready for anything, goose bumps on my skin

And so fast the time passed me by each day From London, Rome, Paris and Spain So many memories created, and friendships made My thoughts stay alive, they will never fade

Now as I look around my room A place that I am leaving so very soon I think of the place I was before And before again as my head gets sore

So much change has happened in my life I wonder what will lie ahead this time But then something inside me speaks ‘time to go home’, my heart skips a beat

Sometimes it is good to get away To loose yourself and forget your pain To meet new people and expand your mind Because you never know what you might find

I found love, a new life, a new world I found hurt, pain, untruths that unfurled I saw places of happiness, success and wealth I saw those in distress, poverty and ill health

And now as I turn my back on the past I pick up my bags and get out of here fast The time has come to venture back home To my family and friends…..I am no longer alone!

Looking back at what could have been is to pine for star-eyed illusions

So much pain we have brought Just to get taught how to fight with guns An Knives beside handle it like Grown ups some of us don’t know Right from left better yet how to spell So quick to lash out in violence without Even thinking about what comes With the Consequence wrapped Into misery at some degree we have To take a stand for ourselves and other Show people that their is a different way Besides hate,lust also violence that’s show Love so more people can stop dealing hate On each corner of my street why show fake Love when you can kill someone with kindness Some already come from broken back arounds Hopefully to see around day like make this place a better for our younger generation so they all can have better opportunities then we had tell yes to show an no to drugs we gotta Take a stand before it’s to late

Oh that I still had The fire of my fleeting youth But my moment has come to have passed

I've lost what once was And I'm alone in this truth I'm still chasing a ghost fading fast

I'm stuck in this fog I can see nothing ahead And behind me lies only the past

As I make way through I find my courage has fled Will I find the other side at last?

Energy leaves your fingers tingling, Leg bouncing, Heart pounding.

You never know what tomorrow will bring, What your future will be, Or what you believe.

Everything’s different But it’s still really the same, Your all the time forgetting everyone’s name!

Running wind in my hair Unlimited energy Never tired Happy

laughing with friends You said whatever Not judged Cate free

Swimming Splashing Smiling All together Everyone there

Happy Your young again Care free No responsibility You can live

The feeling of youth. I could bottle it up and sell it for millions.

When I drink from that bottle I’m back to a place I didn’t know how to fully appreciate when I was there. That garage. That living room where we would collapse on the soft brown couches after taking shots in the kitchen.

The kitchen with holes in the walls from drunken behavior.

The drunken behavior that lead to slow kisses, silly laughter, dancing on tables, heartfelt words. Heartfelt words that felt comfortable in the dark and that we avoided in the day.

But oh the day, When the sun would shine and we would swim in the lake and find eachother beneath the surface of the water.

Water that flowed to the streams and down the sides of mountains, offering a place to drink as we drove through the forest with the top down on your jeep.

The jeep where lovers crammed one too many into the back. But I held your hand and my head rested on your shoulder. The wind blew through my hair and I felt sense of freedom I have never known. My fingers traced your palms like they traced ancient carvings on the cave walls.

The cave walls that shielded us as the rain fell and the sun set.

We made our way down the mountain, back to the house, wild, free and slipping in the rain and the dark.

And now we are back to the dark. With slow kisses and heartfelt words.

And all my youth had been leading up to these moments. And all my youth ended in these moments.

That gasp Was a grasp Of the wisdom you hold dear You took to the skies For there are clouds in your eyes Your soul is much older than you appear

I however am grounded I stand firm Independent I have not wisdom but cunning The day is always young For my mind is always running

We are different you and I You are an old thing Set in your ways I am a new toy I still laugh, try new things, and play

I soar You are sinking I do not appreciate what I’m given You love the world you live in What is it then you are wishing I have so much ahead of me All you do is look behind For ahead is a gate that glows And a world you think is divine

But maybe you know More than I But of course I will not realize The wisdom you have given me Until I too and bent and old Til I creak like rotted floorboards And I too will miss the victory of a race well run That we have all taken for granted The sweet nectar of youth Truly missed

The sun is always shining And when it’s not we play in the rain The days of fun fly by Exuberant and joyful There’s always new things to learn And new discoveries around every corner Nothing seems old or forgotten A shiny new toy on a birthday A trip to a theme park Vacations with family It doesn’t last forever But it’s blissful when you’ve got It

after the first breath you take there will never be a break your chest will rise and fall from the minute you’re born to the minute you die so when you’re laying in your bed at 3am contemplating on ending it all remember that you can only make it so far