I saw a picture of myself When I was five. Looking in her eyes... The innocence inside. Remembering the demons She struggled hard to hide. The world saw only smiles... But inside she quietly died. Living with a bullseye. Drawing every darkness near. Only ever searching For someone who felt safe here. Behind those big blue eyes... Lived a child nobody knew. Still waiting for somebody To say... "I believe you." I saw a picture of myself When I was eight. Too young for all those burdens. Too young to know that hate. I saw a picture of myself When I was twelve. The ground beneath my little feet Began to give itself. Everything I'd memorized Was scattered by the wind. So I searched for something To quiet all the noise within. Smoke became a curtain. The bottle blurred the pain. I wasn't chasing trouble... I was trying to escape the rain. I saw a picture of myself When I was sixteen. Detached from all the laughter... Like I was never seen. The smoke became my company. The bottle knew my tears. I was only trying To survive those lonely years. I saw a picture of myself At thirty-eight. She wasn't looking backward... She was opening the gate. I reached toward the little girl I'd searched for all these years. She took my hand and smiled... Through all our borrowed tears. I asked her, "Are you ready to come home?" And quietly... She said, "I've been waiting."
