How can you say you know me
When I don't even know myself?

You put a mirror in front of my face
And smiled at the reflection

These puppet strings
Have puppet tendencies

They will snap
When I pull

Like a butterfly going back to its cocoon
shedding its intricate wings
and wrapping itself in darkness
waiting for the change to be complete
back to the familiar nothingness
that has become so familiar
it feels like home

We are expected to do great things
To save the world
Even when our own lungs
Heave though each breath
Like they're ******* in water
Instead of air

Know this
Sometimes it is enough
To close your eyes each night
And simply say
You made it through the day
Alive again.

Remember that time
When it all seemed clear?
The path laid out
A straight shot into the sunset

Your bag was packed
Boots laced up tight
Slathered with sunscreen and bug spray

But after a few miles
Something happens

Maybe you see a storm in the distance
Roiling dark clouds
Cracks of thunder
And lightning that splits the air apart
And all you have
Is the light jacket you packed
In case it got chilly

Maybe, without warning,
The road splits apart into two, three, five
Different routes
No signs, no maps, no markers
And the fear of choosing wrong
Paralyzes you

Maybe you simply grow weary
Of walking
After hundreds of miles
Boots chafing
Water dwindling
Skin torn and blistering

Your backpack
Weighs you down
But you refuse
To leave it
Or even rest for a while
Even though
All that's left in it  
Are stones

Whenever I feel
Even the smallest glimmer  
Of happiness
I hold on so tight
It suffocates