She writes poetry
She plays the violin
She tries to play the part
Somehow she never wins
She grabs a stick of gum
After her cigarette
She puts on a smile
And tries to hide her mess
And makes herself at home in loneliness
And fixes her dress
One of the many things I have learned in the past three years is to find joy where I am, not where I would rather be. The former is right here; the latter is a moving target. 2020 was a rough year, and if any current indicators are to be believed 2021 isn’t going to be much better. Sticking our head in the sand and pretending otherwise isn’t going to help, and if anything will make it worse.
She drives a rusted car
It’s always out of gas
She paints her fingernails
Every shade of black
She makes mistakes
She makes them loud
And she tries so hard
Not to let you down
While we work to make the best of things it is terribly easy to get distracted by that moving target and forget that all around us are people who love and appreciate us and the little things we do that we never notice. Our value becomes diminished and we compensate by pushing more for that hypothetical existence that may or may not be feasible right now, and while resilience in the face of failure is considered one of the most important tools for success, the undervalued truth is that failure always takes its toll.
Somebody loves you
Just the way you are
And I can’t fix you
And I can’t change you
But I can love you
Just the way you are
Instead tearing your fingers apart on a wall you cannot climb right now, stop for a moment and turn around. Look behind you. I can guarantee there is someone back there watching your struggle with an overflowing heart who loves you for all that you are, right now, in this moment, without regard for what is on the other side.
I’m here, I’m not going anywhere
I’m scared you’ll go too far
One tear can turn into an ocean of regret
So don’t forget
Somebody loves you
