No one can tell me who to be
No one can say who I am
I created who you see today
I built my life with my own hands

No one can say they own me
No one can stake a claim
I refuse to act as society's slave
I will not know such shame

No one can ever hold me back
No one can quench my fire
I will simply add more fuel, you see
I will glow to my heart's desire

No one has burned more bridges than I
No one has pushed away so many
I was stupid to give them all a chance
I have made too many enemies

No one thought I could do it
No one believed it when I did
I wish to Hell they had some faith
I wish they trusted the words I said

No one tried to save me
No one saw me slip away
I lived a life of solitude
I pushed through so much pain

No one ever doubts me now
No one thinks me a weak essence
I proved every one of them wrong
I earned my independence

No one dares dictate my life
No one braves the ice cold waters
I, myself, and me stick together
I don't need any followers

My future is all planned out
But not by me
My parents took it upon themselves , y'see
They want me to succeed
But not at something that interests me
"You'll never work a day in your life
If you truly love your job"
If that's so then I suppose
Work is all my life will ever be
If you won't let what I do
Be decided by me

Staring at the coals
Watching as they change colors
And burn into nothing
Enchants me
I can't tear my eyes away
From the bright flashes
Of orange
Licking and tasting the wood
It craves to devour
Smoke rises
Effortlessly
Into the night sky
Shivering
Moving closer
But not too close
For though its flames mesmerize
They can inflict pain
And ****** the breath from my body
So much suffering can come from
Trusting Fire

I am a blank canvas
Waiting
Praying
For an artist to give me purpose
I need to feel the brush strokes
He makes as he trails the fibers
Over my skin
I love the colors he chooses
Warms and cools
The paint is thick
And oily
But it feels perfect
Against my contours
And with every swish I become
More and more
Beautiful

I used to see beauty
And find comfort in the stars
But of late
They have lost their luster
Why should I dwell on ***** of fire
Thousands of light years away?
No longer can specks of light comfort
My tortured soul
No longer can I believe
There is a God watching over me
I have lost too much
And been cut too deeply
To put faith
In the night sky
For once the stars filled
My heart with wonder
But now they fill my heart with cold
Because when I look up at them
All I can see is your smile
All I can taste are your lips
All I can feel are you gentle hands
All I remember is a clear autumn night
Stargazing with you
And these memories destroy me

Kindness is understanding
That how we're born isn't a choice
It's smiling at strangers
And appreciating their voice
It's always being gentle
And just trying to help
It's not being judgmental
It's passion and it's poise
Without the kind people
This world would be a mess
So next time someone asks you
To lend a hand just say "yes"
Remember you're making a difference
Even if it's very small
The tiniest of smiles
Can save someone from a fall
Beauty is in the eye
Of the beholder, they say
And the beholder can choose
To see everyone beautiful today

Standing alone
Watching time tick by
Hearing the world spin
Seeing silence
I am at peace
With nature
And she
Is at peace
With me
Not a whisper of wind
Through the oaks
No stir from the man
Hiding in the Moon
I have never been
So close
To Heaven
And so far
From life
The stars and constellations
Are nearer now
Than ever before
I can touch them
Feel the hot
In the blackness
We perceive as cold
I know
Why I am here
I was born
To be silent
To touch the cosmos
To feel the icy heat
Of a shooting star
Zipping next to my ear
I am the Watcher
And the Listener
I cannot change the Universe
All I can do
Is observe
The infinitely finite landscape
Around me