The Long Way Home

The Long Way Home 9/3/2013

Sometimes words come easy

But sometimes they do not come at all

Because they remain lodged in the throat

Too jagged, sharp and painful

To force or expel. 

The more that you feel

The more, that they mean

Dangerous when held under pressure

And coming out,  all awkward and wrong.

And I have swallowed my swords

More times than I can count

And what a shame it is

That half a life time

Has come and gone.

We can be kind to strangers

But save the worst for later

Letting them loose when we are relaxed

And trusted. 

Youth is wasted

On the foolish

And the unknowing

As we react, rather than think

And feel rather than understand. 

Some learn over time

And grow wiser with age

While others remain the same

Stunted and infantile.

I had to suffer

And start from scratch

Relearning again and again

How to breathe

And how to live. 

To survive by faith

And to know what matters

Appreciating the smallest of pleasures

Instead of longing for a world,

That does not exist. 

But even the biggest mistakes

And the most devastating losses

Happen for a reason

Even if, we do not understand. 

God still loves us enough

To know, how we learn

Able to see every step

And know every flaw. 

It is he, that knew

What it was, that I needed

And it is he, that knows

All that I can become.  

Everything that is lost

Is returned with love

But only if we give up

And believe. 

At our lowest

We learn to trust

And we learn to appreciate

The true and everlasting treasure

Far greater than what we can buy

Or own. 

Comfort can come

Even with nothing

The day that you see yourself

And decide what to do. 

Life will never be

The way, that we want

But it still, gives us gifts

That are all,

That we need.

Nothing is more important

Than the knowledge

That his promise outweighs

Every loss,

And every sacrifice. 

He knew us both

Before we ever lived

And holds us, as precious gifts

To be scolded, and protected.

Now comes the chance

That some have never seen

As we journey on

Eyes wide open. 

Walking upright

With our head held high

Free to finish every last day

Aware and alive.

The new world will come

And looking backwards

This will all make sense

With all the pain behind us

And forever;  to build, share, and know.