There was once a child who believed that heaven would save him
That God would reach out with shining hands and place him in his lap like his own son
That he would love him unconditionally and eternally
Blissfully unaware that heaven has raised him for sacrifice
Cultivated his pain until he was the perfect martyr
Only to become cared about when he's six feet under

There was once a child who believed that heaven could talk to them
That they could hear the whispers of angels in the oak trees and the will of worlds in flower petals
They spoke of sweet kindness and golden gates
Led along with the world to believe in glory and God
Sculpted into a prophet of lies
Only to learn after death the seemingly merciful had deceived them all

There was once a child who believed that heaven owed her
That it had to answer for the target it painted on her back and the weight it had shoved onto her shoulders
They said it was a necessary evil and she was their only hope
She never believed it for a moment
But she still allowed herself to be the messiah for the unworthy
Only if she had ever been qualified for sainthood in the first place

There was once a child who believed that heaven abandoned them
That it had shunned and shoved them away until they was forever an outcast
They left them isolated and alone, latching onto paper promises and prayers
They had burned their crosses and rosary beads
Already the pariah he wanted to leave someone else for once
Only there had never had been a heaven to leave

There was once a child who believed that heaven crashed with the citadels
Holiness shattering like the stained glass windows
They had never listened to heaven
They had seen heaven's plan for them and had opted out
Branded a sinner and a cheat
Only if they didn't already know that hell suited their bloodied knuckles and cigarettes more than heaven ever did