The streets are cold and unforgiving
Smothered in white silence that cuts you to the bone and makes you wish for hell just so you can find warmth
You may find peace in it but not tonight
Not when the winds howl and threaten to knock you flat on your face
You promised you would be the one to keep me warm
But the only thing I have now is this lit cigarette and the chattering of my teeth spitting out "Where are you? Where are you? Where are you?"
Because you're sure as hell not here.
The only thing colder than this frozen wasteland is the soul-numbing emptiness of the world around me.
You must have left along with the sun
You promised me
But you're not here

And I dream but I don't sleep,
because sleep implies rest.
So all of the restless dreamers,
we wander the streets
in a heaven and hell of our own creation;
the demons of our imagination.
And we sing of love.
And we sing of hate.
And we whisper of rebellion-
and we seal our fates.
We own the night,
but they own the days;
the ones who enslave us-
but we break off our chains.
Because we dream without sleep,
and we wander without rest.
The restless dreamers
who own the streets and the demons-
because we have faced them.

It seems that whenever life throws something pleasant my way
I'm always looking behind my back
Waiting for some contradiction
A monster in the corner
This goodness couldn't possibly be, in fact, meant for me.
Maybe.

The pain finally caught up to me today
I'd been running
Hiding in the arms and the minds of others
Sneaking through smoke-filled corridors
Diving into a lake of liquor
But I stopped running today
And, having no place else to hide,
It found me.
All because I met a man
And I asked him If he let himself feel the pain before he fought
Or if he started kicking and screaming immediately
"Run." Was all he said
So I did.

Close your eyes, beautiful dreamer.
Feel the suns warmth radiate from your skin.
Let the midwestern sky fade into stars
that float amongst your dreams,
and light up the darkest parts of your mind.
Lay down your head atop the wildflowers and wheat-
and know that when you close your eyes, beautiful dreamer,
I will be there waiting.