I wish I could see you all,
And learn everything you've done
Since I burned every bridge available to me.

I was young, foolish, too blind to see
How much I could ever miss everyone.
My path of progress was a long fall.

Perhaps I'll reach out again, one final time;
Though the river is wide and I cannot swim,
To reopen doors, it's worth the risk.

The cold shoulder I turned was far too brisk,
I was a fool to cast out life on a whim;
Alone, reaching new light is a long, steep climb.

But now, as I write my way through feelings,
I begin to second-guess my hopes for contact.
Why would any of them want to hear from me?

Perhaps I should set my anxieties free,
Accept these desires as far too abstract
To ever hope to work in real-world dealings.

A compromise, then, I can do that much.
Reveal my face for those who'd seek to look.
And stand by waiting for new bridges built.

If not, then I'll just carry my guilt,
And return my pain to that ancient sketchbook
That I filled with regrets and sins and such,

And then I'll keep moving, down a path yet unknown,
Leave my pages of pain behind for those who care;
I no longer do, I prefer my positive side.

Every mile or so, I'll lament bonds that died,
But I won't retreat to my old, barren stare;
My bitter past is but a crown of thorns,
And the future ahead is my throne.