ECHOES

Lord knows, I’ve
Walked a lot of roads
I’ve told a lot of lies
And didn’t end up wise
From telling stories
About nonexistent glories,
But I must admit
I learned a bit from it.
I shucked and I
Shuffled and I
Pretended a lot.
The suffering it brought
Was only sort of worth it
If you can compare it
To how ignorant I was
When I started out
Had no idea what I was about.

I had to hurt a lot of people
Saw my lovers weep while
I stumbled on to the next one
Telling myself I was having fun
But the pain had not begun
Not really, just a hint
Of how bent I had become
And how I came to mean
So very little to anyone
Or to myself it seemed.
I never dreamed
It could hurt
So much
To live without touch.

Now, with nothing to boast
What I miss the most
Is laughing together
At silly jokes
Sharing some tokes
With people glad to see me
Instead of hiding from me
And hoping I forget
Where they live
And living to regret
I had so little to give.
I wish that was a jest
But it’s really the best
I can say about myself
Back then
Back when
I was a fool.

Brent Kincaid
2/9/2015