One chance
That's all I've got
One glance
To make this shot
A final stance
To change our lot
This chance is all we've got

Little blue marble
Hurtling through outer space
With lone yellow star

"Why don't you ask for help
If you know you're not alright?"

Because we all know what happens
To cornered dogs who bite

As soon as I get out of bed
My hair makes a mess of my head
I brush it flat and sleek
And, for an hour, its neat
But then it gets frizzy instead

How low
Do you want me to go?

How much further
Do you think I can sink?

Do you wish me
To lower myself
To the level of a beast
Because I can do that

Be warned, good sir
That if you push me that far
I can be quite dangerous
Dangerous enough to ****

You don't think I could?

I bet you don't think
That it's possible
To **** a man with only your nails

Or that it's possible
To tear open a man's throat
With one's nails and teeth

But it is possible
And if you push me that far
I will not hesitate to such things

So I will ask you
One more time:

*How low do you want me to go?

I do still love you
But things have been happening
This has to be done

Whatever this is
Its my problem and not yours
I won't drag you in

I hope you're okay
I know we're on good terms, but
I can't help this guilt

I am moving on
But the things this uncovered
Are just starting up

I wonder if my life
And all of its things
Is held up by
A set of strings
It just seems to me
That every day
Someone else
Is deciding my ways
I wonder if
I am really me
Or if someone else
Decides who I'll be

And I wonder if
I'll lose this bet
And remain
A marionette
I wonder if
I should be this way
Or if it's better
To break away

What I wonder most
In all of these things
Who is the one
Pulling these strings
Is it someone close
Or a large crowd
That keeps me from saying
What I wish to aloud

And I wonder if
I'll lose this bet
And remain
A marionette
I wonder if
I should be this way
Or if it's better
To break away

If I break these strings
Will I crash as I fall
Or will I learn
To fly above it all

And I wonder if
I'll lose this bet
And remain
A marionette
I wonder if
I should be this way
Or if it's better
To break away

You probably think
That I have it made
But what you see as a palace
I see as a cage

These bangles you see
Of silver and gold
Are my handcuffs
To the traditions of old

I'm expected to walk
With beauty and grace
And to hide my true feelings:
My mask is my face

I have to be perfect
A model for the crowd
I'm a regular girl
But I can't say that aloud

I might be famous
But I'll never be free
Not with the rules
That dictate what I'll be

So next time you wish
That you were in my place
Remember that I
Hide much behind my face

A random thought
(Take it as you will):
I've been in every hotel
On this little hill

I guess sixteen years
Is enough time
To see every inn
I'm this road's line

Flashing red and gold
         Dancers leap across the stage
                         Graceful, wild, and free

What would you say
If your poems came alive
And the dream you had
Became real life
What would you do
When someone asks
About a small mark
You were trying to mask

People keep saying "Just be yourself!"
But they act disappointed when you're not someone else

Through glass panes
A dime of blue
The light leaves me wondering:
"What else will I do?"

In our world, it's hard
To tell truth from the lies
When everyone just says
Whatever people will buy

When TV creates
Unreal reality
They compromise truth
For what people want to see

Honest, serious programs
Are frequently unnoticed
So reporters only show
What clickbait puts in focus

But I have hope
That this problem will be fixed
For there are still those who care
For news in a reality midst

I may not be writing this story
I don't know what you're intending
But please, dear author, please
At least tell me if there is an ending

I had another dream
(Which is rare for me at night)
I had a bruised arm
Like I'd gotten in a fight
And when people asked about it
I didn't know what to say
Wether to tell others I made them
Or if I should brush questions away

The roaring storm's sky
Can make the ground shake
When thunder comes by
It makes the earth quake

Long after dark
In a sky full of grey
Lightning's quick mark
Turns night into day

You foolish men
Who toy with others' lives
Act as though you're safe
From a revolutionary's knives

You may be fine
With your panem et circenses
But be warned, your actions
Do carry consequences

Ignorance is only bliss
When you're the one the effects miss

The thunder is the click
The lightning is the flash
The storm takes a picture
For the universe's dash

I aspire to be
Both brave and smart
To have the wit of a fox
And a thundering heart

I yearn to become
Both kind and tough
The girl who's nice
But doesn't mind being rough

I wish I were
What I aspire to be
But the path to my goal
Is one I can't see

I wish I could
Be open and free
But honestly, people want
A perfect version of me

It's easy to say
You'd take a bullet for a friend
When no one has
A gun held up to their head

I wonder if I
Was ever really normal
Well, If I was, I haven't been for years
According to this journal

I want to live for today
But keeping grades gets in the way
I want to be wild
But to get a job I have to be mild
They say "be yourself"
And throw themselves at your mental health
Welcome to high school

Welcome to high school
It's not exactly musical
Welcome to high school
Isn't it wonderful?
Forget what you know
I'm just here to show
You your classes in a place
You thought would be cool

You're underslept
You're somewhat upset
Mood swings, hormones
Family issues
A shitload of schoolwork
Mix them together in a class
And you'll pray that college will come fast

In today's complex world
Full of questions and hazards
Where some voices go unheard
And people have conflicting standards
Sometimes I wish
That for a little time
I could be less human-ish
And more canine

I could run like crazy
And bark like a dog
And after hours of playing
I'd skeep like a log

I could jump and yip
As a clever little fox
With agility and wit
I could skip over rocks

I could join the chase
As a strong hunting wolf
In an open, starry space
I could just howl and woof

Somedays I'd like
To be of genus Canis
For I'd enjoy being doglike
When humanity gets on my wits

She speaks in rhyme
Cadence keeping with time
Her words flow out in verse
Creating a universe
Her mind builds sculptures
That reflect while cultures
Her gaze can amass
Ideas for a canvas
She knows stories by rote
She never misses a note
She creates upon what she veiws
Artists, she's your muse

I think I need to find
More reasons to stay
I'm dangerously close
To running away

I constantly worry about
My reason to live
Because I never know
Which is the last breath I'll give

I keep comming back
To my existentalism
I wonder if I can be happy
With any belif system

Sometimes I wonder
If I'm obsessive
If my frequent musings
Cross the line into excessive

Sometimes I wonder
Going day to day
If I'll ever even
Get to have a say

Sometimes when I'm awake
In the middle of the night
I wonder if I'm normal
And, failing that, all right

Sometimes the weather
Is a foe you can't beat.
The library just closed
"Due to excessive heat".

Is there a way
To say goodbye?
One that won't hurt
You and I?

Is there a way
To make a farewell sweet?
Knowing this is the last time
We'll ever meet?

Is there a way
To do this nicely?
To split up with someone
But to do it politely?

Is there a way
To lessen this pain?
In this split
Is there something to attain?

One of the greatest moments
In this world, I find,
Is finally finding a song
That seems to read your mind

When the beat drops, you feel it
In every body part
And you feel it in your soul
As the beat matches your heart

The artist behind the song
Knows you better than your friends
And you think about it for hours
After the song ends

So while the world is huge and confusing,
At least I know an artist who shares in my musings

Should I trust my instincts
Or my family?
Should either of them
Get to decide me?

You know you're a sailor's daughter
When you can smell if there's salt in the water

You know you're a sailor's daughter
When you swim with the ease of an otter

You know you're a sailor's child
When you love waters both tame and wild

You know you're a sailor's girl
When water surrounds your whole world

I thought I could handle life
But before very long
My entire world flipped around
And I'm losing "right" and "wrong"

There's a version of me
Who's smart, pretty, and strong
But she only exists in my mind
In the midst of stories and songs

I attempt to pay attention to the events
But no mater how hard I try
I understand sports as well as
A penguin trying to fly

But I really do love this event
That comes once every four years
Because with all that goes on in the world
Global cooperation like this is music to my ears

Some of your stories are daft
But some will give you a fright
Much like "the Russian Sleep Experiment"
Which I just read tonight

Sometimes when I'm inside
This world that I am seeing
I often cannot tell the difference
Between my waking and dreaming

Do you really want to know
What's tearing me up inside?
It's that when I'm with you
All I can do is hide

As long as I'm here
In this house and school
Breathing deeply feels
Like I'm drowning in a pool

All I really want
Is to get out of this place
Wether I end up nearby
Or in outer space

So please don't tell me
"Just relax and smile."
Being free to be myself
Will just have to wait a while

Sometimes the only thing
That gets me through the day
Are my eight million fantasies
About running away