My115thDream

Poem - "Your Own Road"

You shined your new shoes just to walk the high wire,
You bought a slick suit and then set it on fire,
The jig you’ve been dancing, soon must it end,
For mercy can’t find too fickle a friend,
A friend to the peaceful laying low in the valley,
But your loyalty lies in a broken down alley,
Too deeply entrenched to be easily stirred,
So you left it for dead without saying a word.
You’re straddling the line with all of your might,
Frying pan to the left and fire to the right,
Either way you might wish you’d picked the other
When you’re counting down days just to get to another,
Laying there mourning your self-induced pain,
As the hours wash away down the gutter like rain.
So what will it be, my wide-eyed friend?
What path will you take, and to get to what end?
Will you sail the heavens with a cool hand to guide you
Like many young dreamers before you have tried to?
Drifting from place to place as you please,
Going out on a limb on the highest of trees,
Gasping for breath every step of the way,
Not knowing where you’ll sleep at the end of the day,
Burning your way through half-dead towns,
Getting high on the ups so you can’t feel the downs.
Or will you decide when the wind gets too cold
That you’d rather trade in your feathers for gold,
And trade your jalopy for a new silver sleigh
So the sliver-haired elders can show you the way.
You can write your own ticket and book it first class,
And hope that your high-flying dreams will soon pass.
You were born with a gift that sets you apart,
And also a flame that burns in your heart.
Which one will conquer is now up to you,
And it won’t be painless or easy to do.
But why do you worry and lose sleep in bed
When you’ve looked for the answer everywhere but your head?
You know that you’d never give up the one thing
That fills you with fire no angel can bring,
No blaze of glory could match that one force,
You’ll follow that star no matter your course.
And no matter how big of a crown you inherit,
You will never blacken your soul just to wear it,
No well-charted course or intricate scheme
Will keep you from chasing your own red-eyed dream.
You need not decide between two sets of rules
If you build your own road with your own set of tools,
You’ll have critics and judges every step of the way,
But don’t pay attention to the things that they say,
It’s your life to live and live it you must,
Your own is the only voice you can trust.